Question 1

Who is ibakepro for?

Accepted Answer

ibakepro is built for bakers at every stage. Whether you are a home baker, cottage food operator, custom cake artist, or managing a commercial bakery, our platform scales with your business. We support specialty dessert shops, bakeries, custom cake designers, and cookie businesses looking to streamline their daily operations.

Question 2

Is ibakepro suitable for a home bakery or cottage food business?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Many of our users are home bakers and cottage food operators. ibakepro provides a professional foundation with custom websites, online ordering, and branded invoices. Whether you are managing local pickups or navigating cottage food regulations, our Essentials plan is designed specifically for home-based businesses looking to grow.

Question 3

Is there a free trial?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Every plan includes a 14-day free trial with full access to all features. A credit card is required at signup. This gives you time to set up your products, import your customer list, and test ibakepro in your daily workflow before you are charged.

Question 4

How easy is it to switch from spreadsheets to ibakepro?

Accepted Answer

The transition is straightforward. You can import your existing customers, orders, and inventory directly into ibakepro using CSV files. Our import tool guides you through the process, and most bakers are fully set up within a day. You also maintain full ownership of your data and can export it at any time.

Question 5

Can you help me with my domain name?

Accepted Answer

Yes. If you already own a domain, you can link it to your storefront on the Growth or Business plan and we'll guide you through the technical setup. Buying a domain directly through ibakepro is coming soon - in the meantime, you can register one through any provider and connect it to your account.

Question 6

What's the difference between the plans?

Accepted Answer

We offer three plans - Essentials, Growth, and Business - each designed for a different stage of your bakery.

Essentials is for home bakers just starting out. 1 user, up to 100 lifetime orders, and everything you need to run a small operation: Products, Pantry, Allergens, Manual Production & Stock Tracking, Website Builder, Social Media, Calendar, Tasks, Expenses, Analytics, and Payment Integrations.

Growth is the upgrade once you've outgrown Essentials. 2 users, unlimited orders, plus the Compliance module, a Custom Domain, and Custom Email for your business.

Business is for established bakeries with a team, multiple channels, or delivery operations. Unlimited users, plus all the integrations and tools you need to scale: Square POS, Shopify, Xero accounting, Online Storefront, Route Optimisation, Driver Management, Proof of Delivery, Recurring Production & Auto-Portioning, Webhooks, Public REST API, and the ability to remove ibakepro branding.

All plans include Choux Studio (AI design) and Ask Choux (AI analytics) on a pay-as-you-go basis. SMS notifications are also pay-as-you-go across all plans.

Question 7

How do I manage custom orders and quotes?

Accepted Answer

The Orders feature allows you to create detailed, itemized quotes and track them from the initial inquiry to final delivery. You can attach reference photos, design notes, and custom fields for specific details like cake flavors, fillings, and sizes.

You can also send a quote with multiple options - for example a 6", 8", and 10" version at different price points - and the customer picks one in the portal before paying their deposit. Less back-and-forth, fewer dropped leads.

Once a quote is sent, customers can approve and pay deposits online, ensuring your schedule is secured.

Question 8

How sophisticated is the Product Builder?

Accepted Answer

It's a proper bill-of-materials system, not just a product list. Every product is built from components (a tier, a filling, a topping) and components are built from pantry ingredients. That means:

Allergens roll up automatically - tag peanuts on one ingredient and every product containing it inherits the warning.

Costs stay accurate - change a supplier price in the pantry once, and every recipe, component, and product that uses it updates instantly.

Variants are first-class - fondant colours, cake flavours, fillings, sizes, all tracked separately.

Packaging suggestions and labour complexity multipliers feed into your pricing automatically.

Margins, allergens, and ingredient traceability stay correct without manual maintenance.

Question 9

Can customers place orders online through my website?

Accepted Answer

Yes. With the Business plan, your Online Storefront allows customers to browse products, select customization options, and choose their pickup or delivery times. Payments are handled securely online.

Question 10

How do I handle deposits and payment plans for large orders?

Accepted Answer

ibakepro supports flexible payment workflows, including deposits, installments, and full payments. You can set deposit amounts as a percentage or a fixed fee, and the system tracks the remaining balance automatically.

To ensure you get paid on time, you can:

Automate payment reminders for upcoming balances.

Accept secure online payments via Stripe, PayPal, or Square.

Track payment status for every order in your dashboard.

Question 11

What payment methods can my customers use?

Accepted Answer

Through our integrations with Stripe, PayPal, and Square, your customers can pay via credit card, debit card, Apple Pay, Google Pay, and bank transfer.

You can accept these payments:

Online through your storefront.

Via payment links sent directly to customers.

In-person using Square.

Question 12

Can ibakepro help me price and calculate profit margins?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Our Product Builder allows you to create products with detailed cost breakdowns. By linking the Pantry feature for real-time ingredient costs with our Expenses tracker, you can identify your true overhead and set profitable prices.

For quick insights, the Analytics tool can instantly answer questions such as "What is my average profit margin?" across your entire menu.

Question 13

Can I track my ingredients and get low stock alerts?

Accepted Answer

Yes. The Pantry feature is a complete ingredient and inventory management system. You can track stock levels for all your supplies, set reorder points, and receive automatic alerts when items run low.

This ensures you have the inventory needed for every order-from fondant and buttercream to bulk flour and sugar-without the risk of running out mid-production.

Question 14

Can I store my recipes and calculate recipe costs?

Accepted Answer

Yes. The Pantry includes a recipe management system where you can store your entire library and link each recipe to specific ingredients.

The system automatically calculates the cost per recipe based on your current ingredient prices. When your supplier prices change, you only need to update the cost in your Pantry once-ibakepro will automatically update the costs across all your linked recipes and products. This ensures your profit margins stay accurate without manual recalculations.

Question 15

How do I track allergens?

Accepted Answer

Allergens are tagged once on the pantry ingredient - nuts, gluten, dairy, eggs - and from there they flow upward automatically: ingredient → component → product → order. Tag peanuts on one pantry item and every cake, cupcake, or batch that uses it inherits the warning without any manual upkeep.

Allergen tagging is available on every plan. For deeper food safety management - temperature logs, incident reports, pest visits, traceability records - see the Compliance module on the Growth and Business plans.

Question 16

Does ibakepro handle food safety and HACCP-style records?

Accepted Answer

Yes. The Compliance module is a full food safety management system. On the Growth and Business plans you can log:

Temperature checks: Probe readings against calibrated ranges, with alerts when a reading falls outside.

Pest sightings and visits: Track sightings, follow-up actions, and pest control visit logs.

Equipment maintenance: Custom checklists with completion history and overdue reminders.

Cooking and cooling logs: Batch-level temperature records with full ingredient traceability.

Test tag logs: Cold storage verification records.

Incident reports: Severity, investigation status, corrective actions, and auto-escalation when items age.

Approved supplier register: Document upload, expiry tracking, and verification.

Everything feeds into a Danger Zone PDF report you can hand straight to an inspector, plus full traceability from ingredient batch → component → product → order → delivery.

Question 17

How do I manage my bakery schedule and avoid overbooking?

Accepted Answer

The Calendar provides a visual overview of all your orders, pickups, and deliveries in one place. To prevent overbooking, you can:

Block out dates: Mark yourself as unavailable for holidays, personal time, or fully booked weekends.

Manage time slots: Control specific windows for pickups and deliveries to stagger customer arrivals.

For added convenience, your ibakepro schedule syncs directly with Google Calendar, so you always know what is coming up on your production list.

Question 18

Do I need technical skills to build my bakery website?

Accepted Answer

No. Our Website Builder is designed specifically for bakers, not developers. You can choose from professionally designed templates tailored for the baking industry and customize them with your own branding, photos, and logo-no coding required.

The process is straightforward:

Choose a template that fits your style.

Update the content and upload your images.

Connect your domain (available on the Growth and Business plans) and publish.

You get a clean, professional online presence that works across all devices without needing to hire a web designer.

Question 19

How does the AI Design Studio help with custom orders?

Accepted Answer

Custom work is an art, and the AI Design Studio helps you communicate your vision. By entering a detailed prompt-such as "box of 12 floral-themed macarons in pastel hues"-you receive a realistic mockup that bridges the gap between your imagination and your customer's expectations.

Use it to:

Showcase your creative direction during the initial inquiry.

Confirm specific toppings, colors, and textures with the buyer.

Build trust with a polished, visual-first quoting experience.

Question 20

How deep does the analytics go?

Accepted Answer

Further than most bakery software. Out of the box you get revenue trends, order metrics, customer insights, per-product profit margins, labour cost breakdowns, delivery fee analysis, expense categories, inventory turnover, and compliance trend reports. All filterable by date range, currency, and category, and exportable to CSV.

For anything you can't find as a chart, you can just ask Choux in plain English - it queries the same data and explains the answer.

Question 21

What kind of questions can I ask Ask Choux?

Accepted Answer

You can ask anything about your business data in plain language, just as if you were talking to a colleague. This allows you to get instant answers without building manual reports or digging through spreadsheets.

Common questions include:

Sales Trends: "What were my top 5 selling products last month?" or "How does this month's revenue compare to the same time last year?"

Customer Behavior: "Which customers have spent the most in the last six months?" or "What is the average order value for wedding cakes?"

Operational Efficiency: "What's my busiest day of the week for pickups?" or "How many orders do I typically process on a Friday?"

Profitability: "What is my average profit margin on cupcakes vs. custom cakes?" or "Which products have the highest ingredient costs?

Question 22

How does route optimization work for deliveries?

Accepted Answer

The Route Optimization feature (available on the Business plan) automatically calculates the most efficient delivery sequence for your orders. It analyzes multiple data points to help you plan smarter runs and reduce time spent on the road.

Key factors the system considers include:

Distance and Travel Time: Finds the shortest and fastest paths between your bakery and customers.

Traffic and Tolls: Factors in estimated travel times and toll costs to keep your overhead low.

Fuel Consumption: Optimizes for the least amount of driving, saving you money on fuel.

Delivery Windows: Ensures you arrive within the specific time slots your customers selected.

By streamlining your logistics, you can spend less time in traffic and more time in the kitchen-while ensuring your cakes spend the minimum amount of time in transit.

Question 23

Does ibakepro work in my country?

Accepted Answer

Yes. ibakepro is built to support bakeries worldwide. We provide the infrastructure you need to run your business regardless of your location, with specific support for:

Currencies & Timezones: Full support for USD, AUD, GBP, EUR, CAD, and NZD, plus any local timezone.

Data Residency: You can choose to host your data in AU, US, or UK (London) regions to meet local privacy requirements. The London region serves both UK and EU customers.

SMS Notifications: Automated customer alerts are available in Australia, the USA, the UK, and Canada.

Payments: Our integrations with Stripe, PayPal, and Square work in any country where those platforms operate.

Question 24

Can I send SMS from a dedicated number?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Dedicated SMS numbers are available on any plan - contact support to configure one for your bakery. By default, SMS is sent from our shared sender pool on a pay-as-you-go basis.

Question 25

Can customers reply to my SMS messages?

Accepted Answer

Yes. If you're using a dedicated SMS number, customer replies come straight back into your ibakepro inbox alongside the original order or conversation - so you can keep the thread in one place without juggling a phone.

Question 26

What can the automations actually do?

Accepted Answer

More than just sending order confirmations. The automations engine is a workflow builder with conditional logic, triggers, and actions.

Triggers include: order status changes, payment received or failed, new customer inquiry, low stock alerts, compliance events (temperature out of range, incident logged), and recurring schedules.

Actions include: send email with custom templates, send SMS, fire a webhook (Business plan), or hand off to Choux to draft content.

You can test workflows in dry-run mode before deploying, view full execution history with retry attempts, and chain conditions together so a single trigger can branch into multiple outcomes.

Question 27

Can I run multiple bakery locations under one account?

Accepted Answer

Yes. ibakepro supports multi-location operators on every plan. Each location runs as its own data-isolated account (separate orders, customers, inventory, and staff), all managed from a single login.

Your primary account is billed at the standard plan rate. Each secondary location receives an automatic 80% discount on its subscription, so you only pay 20% of the plan price per additional location. There's no cap on how many secondary locations you can add.

Question 28

Where is my bakery data stored and is it secure?

Accepted Answer

Security and data privacy are core to ibakepro. You choose your preferred data residency region during signup - Australia (Sydney), the United States, or the United Kingdom (London) - to keep your business aligned with local regulations like the UK GDPR, the EU GDPR, and the Australian Privacy Act. The London region serves both UK and EU customers.

Our enterprise-grade security framework includes:

Encryption at Rest and in Transit: Your data is protected using AES-256 encryption (the same standard used by banks) while stored on our servers and while being moved.

Regular Backups: We perform automated, redundant backups to ensure your data are always recoverable.

Question 29

Can I export my data if I decide to leave?

Accepted Answer

Absolutely. You retain full ownership of your data and can export your customers, orders, and inventory to CSV files at any time.

For more advanced needs:

Manual Exports: Download your data directly from the dashboard for use in Excel or other spreadsheets.

Programmatic Access: On the Business plan, our Public REST API provides full access to your data, making it easy to build custom integrations or migrate to other systems if your needs change.

Question 30

Who builds and supports ibakepro?

Accepted Answer

ibakepro is built and managed by a team with over 10 years of combined experience in software development and the professional baking industry.

Our development and support teams are in-house and based in Australia. When you reach out for help, you're talking directly to the people who build and maintain the platform every day.

Question 31

What if I need help getting started or have questions?

Accepted Answer

Every ibakepro plan includes comprehensive support to ensure you're never stuck. Whether you're setting up your first product or scaling to a commercial kitchen, you have access to:

Self-Service Library: Browse our detailed documentation, step-by-step guides, and video tutorials designed specifically for bakers.

Direct Support: Reach out to our in-house team anytime through the dashboard. Since we build the product ourselves, you'll get expert answers from people who actually know how the system works.

Onboarding Resources: Follow our "Getting Started" checklist to get your storefront live and your pantry stocked in record time.

Question 32

What's coming next for ibakepro?

Accepted Answer

We are constantly adding new features based on the feedback of our community. Our goal is to stay ahead of the curve so you can focus on your baking.

Currently, our 2026 development focus includes:

Expanded AI Insights: Moving beyond revenue data to provide predictive analytics-helping you forecast exactly how much flour or butter to order based on historical seasonal trends.

POS Integrations: Enhancing real-time synchronization, to bridge the gap between your online storefront & retail storefront.

Wholesale Management Tools: Advanced features for managing bulk pricing tiers, recurring standing orders, and wholesale-specific invoicing.

Enhanced Customer Portals: Giving your clients more power to manage their own subscriptions, view their order history, and download tax invoices.

Got an idea that would make your life easier? Reach out.

Question 33

Can I manage my social media through ibakepro?

Accepted Answer

Social media management is rolling out shortly - we're finalising approvals with Meta and TikTok before we ship it. Once live, you'll be able to connect your Instagram, Facebook, and TikTok accounts, schedule posts, and reply to DMs from one unified inbox alongside your customer conversations. Google Business Profile is already supported.

Question 34

How does Choux help with my social media?

Accepted Answer

Choux can draft on-brand captions and suggest trending hashtags from a short description of what you've baked - so you can go from "I just finished a hazelnut praline tart" to a ready-to-post caption in seconds. Once scheduled posting is live, Choux will also suggest the best times to publish based on when your followers are most active.

Run your bakerywithout the chaos.

Built end-to-end for bakers.

Built for the way youactually bake.

Expense Tracking

Social Media Hub

AI Design & Insights

Everything your bakery needs -nothing it doesn't.

Choux - your in-house AI

Orders, Customers & Products

Calendar, Tasks & Blocked Dates

Routes, Drivers & Proof of Delivery

Storefront, Payments & Automations

Pantry & Inventory

Expenses

Analytics

Food Safety & Compliance

Website Builder

Custom Fields

Server Location

Document Storage

Team Members

Proof of Delivery

Developer Access

Blocked Dates

Bake Sheet

Multi-Location

Pick a plan that fits your kitchen.

Essentials

Growth

Business

Works wherever you bake

Plays nicely with the toolsyou already use.

What's on the horizon.

POS Integrations

Marketing Module

Digital Products & Classes

Expanded AI Insights

Wholesale Management

Enhanced Customer Portals

Frequently askedquestions.

Bake without thepaperwork chaos.

Run your bakery
without the chaos.