Wedding Horror Stories: The Case of the “Friendor” Cake Disaster

Some couples, in an effort to stretch their budget, opt to hire a "friendor" (yes, that's friend + vendor = "friendor") instead of a licensed, professional vendor. While it can seem like a great way to save, the true cost of cutting corners can be a real nightmare! In this week’s edition of Wedding Horror Stories, we’re sharing a tale that proves why hiring a professional is always worth it!

Picture this: a beautiful Saturday wedding, set-up was going smoothly, and everything was falling into place for the evening’s celebration. The reception room was nearly ready, but one small detail was still missing—the cake. I had asked the bride several times for the cake delivery information, but every time, she assured me, "Don’t worry, my aunt is handling it." Well, as guests began to arrive and the clock ticked closer to the ceremony, I couldn’t shake the feeling something might go wrong.

A quick scan of the reception room revealed something—there it was, the cake! It was sitting next to the cake table on a roll cart. Phew, I thought. The cake had arrived! I called my assistant over to help get it on the table so we could shift our focus to ceremony prep. But as we approached, I noticed something...off. The cake wasn’t quite right. I did a quick lap around the cart and almost immediately realized what had happened: the cake was in rough shape. There was dirt and hair stuck to one side, and the buttercream frosting was smeared down all three tiers. Cue panic mode.😯

I quickly turned to the catering staff to find out who had delivered the cake, but no one had seen a thing in the chaos of set-up. After a whirlwind of investigation (and trying to keep the bride from peeking in and seeing this disaster), I discovered that the cake had been delivered by a friend of the bride’s aunt. Turns out, the cake had fallen during transport, but no one— no one —bothered to tell us. It just appeared in the reception room in its disastrous state.

Finally, I found the person responsible for delivering the cake. Let me tell you, it was not a pleasant conversation. She was hostile and defensive, which made it clear to me she knew exactly what had happened but wasn’t owning up to it. When I explained the cake was beyond saving, she suggested I just “fix it” since there was a kitchen on-site. Newsflash, we were at a golf course—not a bakery. No tools, no utensils, just me and my determination to salvage what was left for photos as we clearly could not SAFELY serve this cake to guests.

After pleading with the chef for help, he managed to smooth out the frosting and attempt some damage control with a butter knife. In the nick of time, the aunt who made the cake arrived with a few extra flowers, enough to cover up the worst of the damage. But let’s be clear: the cake was non-edible at this point—there was too much dirt and hair to even consider serving it. Catering, of course, refused to serve it. So, what did we do? We staged the cake cutting. The couple cut the cake, but we didn’t announce it and tried to keep the focus elsewhere. Our photographer worked some magic and got a few shots from a safe distance, hiding the worst of the mess under the flowers and frosting. No one wants a hairy cake, let alone photos of it!

Thankfully, I had sent my assistant out to the closest grocery store and she was able to purchase a couple of sheet cakes that we had catering cut and serve to guests and no one knew the truth....aside from the aunt, her "friend" and some of the staff that helped save the day.

This is just one of many reasons why hiring professional vendors is so important. If there had been a proper contract with a legitimate bakery, we would’ve received a replacement cake as soon as the problem arose. The bakery would’ve immediately notified us, and we wouldn’t have had to pull together a last-minute fix. Instead, we were left to work with what we had, and the three-tier cake was never even eaten!

So, remember, friends—when it comes to your wedding, don’t skimp on the professionals. Trust us, you’ll want more than just "Aunt Susan's friend" handling your big day’s cake!

Stay tuned for more Wedding Horror Stories this month!

Have a wedding horror story of your own? We’d love to hear about it! Contact us here!