The Cupcake Economy

Chuckle #441 | February 16th, 2011
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A shop called “Crumbs” just opened in my town and the only thing it sells is ginormous, over-the-top cupcakes. You’d think it would be difficult to find funding for a business that relies entirely on the sale of $4 cupcakes. Not true. The Cupcake Bakery concept is booming. And I know this because…

“Happy Valentine’s Day!” said my husband, presenting me with a tray of four elaborately decorated cupcakes.

“Wow,” I exclaimed, thinking that I could not have picked a worse time to be on a low carb diet. “Is there any chance that one of those cupcakes is made entirely of fat and protein? You know, bacon lard frosting with an ethanol filling?”

“Nope” he replied. “But if you’re desperate to chew on something, you could eat the flowers I brought you instead.”

I did not eat the flowers, even though carnations are Atkins approved. I was more than willing to break my four week old diet and stuff three insidious forkfuls of cupcake into my mouth. (All for my husband’s sake, of course.)

Fads come and go, but I’m pretty sure that the cupcake is heir apparent to the “Crispy Crème”, at least for the decadent made-with-lard crowd.

But before we get carried away, let’s take a moment to look at the econometrics behind this foodie boom-let. We all know in our hearts that cupcakes are only successful because of recent fundamental social and economic change in America.

Cupcake mania is the product of the lagging economy AND a very American fear of commitment.

Let’s start with commitment. People these days don’t want to buy an entire cake and be stuck eating the same dessert for weeks. We don’t want to invest $20 bucks in just one indulgence when the world is full of so many possibilities. What if chocolate decadence disappoints?

This theory goes a long way towards explaining the renewed popularity of “tasting” menus and tapas restaurants; and ordering two appetizers for dinner instead of an entrée. (Or am I the only one who does that?)

But the true beauty of a cupcake bakery is that all your cake fantasies can be realized at once. What woman wouldn’t love a place where she could buy miniature versions of all her favorite cakes? Mini desserts are like having mutiple slices of utopia…without the ball and chain of the entire pie.

Have you ever had two boyfriends at once? Sweet. That’s what cupcakes are all about. (Choice that is, not two-timing some poor kid.)

Then there’s the economy, which has NOT recovered despite the recent increase in Starbucks same store sales. If Starbucks can still sell a cup of coffee for $3.50, why shouldn’t “Crumbs” be able to sell a slice of carbohydrate heaven for $4?

If you can’t afford to buy the vacation home on the beach, why not assuage the pain with a killer cupcake? Seriously, there is nothing like a recession to make a “crummy” idea seem like pure genius.
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