A set of wedding cake samples at a Publix supermarket in Vestavia Hills, Alabama, on September 23. Cake flavors from left to right are red velvet, carrot cake, chocolate, and vanilla. The filling flavors from left to right are Raspberry, Vanilla Custard, Cookies and Cream Mousse, and Strawberry.
Stéphane Bisaha
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Stéphane Bisaha
Going to a specialty baker to make your dream wedding cake can cost you over $1,000.
Or you can order a few half sheet cakes from Costco for around $30 each.
“We love Costco more than anything,” said Anna Holleran, who got married this year in California’s Bay Area — and, yes, picked up her wedding cake from the grocery wholesaler.
“Their cakes are so good,” she said. “How can you be wrong?”
Weddings are one of the most expensive days in many people’s lives, costing on average about $36,000, according to wedding planning site Zola. The Bank of America Institute reports that its clients’ wedding spending increased 8.5% in May from a year earlier.
Some of this is by choice, with couples deciding whether to splurge on the venue or follow the latest TikTok reception trend. But there are also less controllable economic factors, like inflation that drives up the price of suits and tariffs that drive up the price of imported flowers and wedding dresses.
And according to Emily Forrest, communications manager at Zola, cake is one place couples are willing to cut costs. About a third of couples Zola surveyed said they would consider spending less on cakes and desserts.
“When it comes to a wedding, every couple always has to sit down and ask themselves, ‘Where are we going to save and where are we going to splurge?'” Forrest said. “And cakes just don’t seem to cut it for a lot of couples.”
What couples aren’t willing to do is ditch the cake tradition altogether.
“You can’t skip the cake!” said Lily Alana Stewart, who got married last year in central Alabama. “Everyone looks forward to cake at a wedding.”
To save money, she ordered her cake from Publix, a Southern grocery chain.
Stewart used baby’s breath to decorate the venue, and Publix incorporated it into the cake design. His colleagues present were surprised to learn where the cake came from. “They said, ‘Wait, wait, wait. Your wedding cake was from Public?'” Stewart said. “And they were still blown away.”
While the average wedding cake costs about $5.50 a slice, according to Zola, a slice of Publix cake is about $1.50 cheaper, while still maintaining that classic three-tiered, white-frosted wedding cake look. The chain also offers couples a tasting flight, so they can sample four flavors, including red velvet and carrot, before ordering.
The wedding cake business has grown at Publix. Stores around Birmingham, Alabama, are selling about 50% more than before 2020, according to Jeff Brancato, retail improvement specialist at Publix. A chocolate cake with fondant that serves 94 people costs $388, according to the Birmingham area price guide.
“There are definitely big savings to be had,” Brancato said.
Still, you get what you pay for in a grocery store cake, with fewer options than a specialty baker might offer, such as more flavors or more personalized decorations. While Publix touts its wedding cake business, Costco doesn’t even list its half sheet as a wedding cake. This works out to about 70 cents per slice. (Costco did not return NPR’s request for an interview.)
Holleran’s priority was to save money where she could. Her wedding took place close to home in California’s wine country, an area that is a top destination for other couples and where venues are expensive.
Holleran said the culinary details of his cake aren’t important. “The real deal is that you’re sharing dessert for the first time with someone you love,” she said. “It’s sort of a symbol of all the sweet moments that we’re supposed to share in a marriage.”
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