Having a cake showroom enables Panadería San Miguel to showcase the latest designs in summer party cakes for celebratory events such as quinceañerasand weddings.

“In the summer, 80 percent of our business is cakes,” says Stacey Romero, whose parents Victorino and Beatriz Romero run the family-owned bakery, which has store locations in Minneapolis and St. Paul, Minnesota. “This location (in Minneapolis) is bigger, so we can showcase our cakes.”

The planning process is integral to success in the wedding cake business because studies show that wedding couples increasingly plan ahead for their special celebrations.

WeddingWire’s new Millennial Engagement Survey finds that young couples are planning more intently and farther ahead compared to generations who were married 10 years ago. Couples dedicate hours researching vendors online, with 87 percent reading reviews when searching, to ultimately hiring a total of 13 professionals on average. Communicating with those wedding professionals is key, as 40 percent expect at least weekly correspondence and 57 percent follow their vendors on social media after they’ve booked their services to confirm their quality of work and get inspiration.

For Panadería San Miguel, helping couples plan ahead is vitally important. The cake showroom in the bakery’s Minneapolis location features dozens of wedding cake designs and creative stands.

“A lot of big cakes are still popular,” Stacey Romero says. “People come here to get a better idea of what they are going to buy. It’s been cool for people to let us be a part of their celebrations. Celebrations are a big part of our culture.”

One trend that Panadería San Miguel has witnessed involves a move away from pillars as the cake stands for the elaborate quinceañera and wedding cakes ordered by their customers. One of the most popular cake stands at the bakery resembles a tree trunk, which is consistent with the current trend of couples choosing nature-based themes for their celebrations. Popular color trends for cake decorations include red and maroon.

“We try to accommodate what we can,” Romero says. “Our cashiers are trained to ask what ribbons they want for their cake, and some cakes have different patterns and sequins. For quinceañeras, usually the color of the cake is determined by what color their dress is going to be. A lot of quinceañeras are popular in the summertime. Most times, depending on the specific cake they want, we may get orders a year ahead of time. It’s like a wedding, you have to plan a lot.”

Once the order is placed and the cake design is determined, Panadería San Miguel doesn’t bake their special cake until the week of the celebration. Final assembly of the cake is handled at the venue on the day of the event. The bakery uses two mini transit vans for cake deliveries.

Romero says they have dabbled a little in doing fondant cakes for celebrations, but these types of cakes a bit more expensive and not as popular with their customers.

At El Mexicano Panadería in Minneapolis, owner Filiberto Onofre makes both whipped topping and fondant from scratch for wedding and quinceañera cakes.

“We are starting to see more demand for fondant cakes,” he says, adding that most customers still prefer the flavor of whipped topping over fondant.

The summer months are equally important to the cake business at El Mexicano Panadería.

“People want to do the big party,” Onofre says. “They wait until summer, especially in Minnesota. We do a lot of cakes for quinceañeras, weddings, first communions, baptisms and more. People still order big cakes from us for all of these events.”

According to consumer research, 80 percent of couples request a layer cake at their wedding and 57 percent wanted at least three layers, according to Thumbtack.com. Tall cakes are more complex and more popular.

Further, couples are becoming experts in combining time-honored traditions with highly personalized elements to ensure their weddings feel like a reflection of themselves. Most couples share a slice of something sweet with a cake-cutting ceremony (84 percent), while 50 percent incorporate a theme into their celebration decor.

Knowing such trends is important for bakeries to keep pace with customer demand and continue to be successful with their celebration cake business.