"Puester" > wrote in message
...
> Alex Rast wrote:
>>
>>
>> One of the ways society operates is under the premise that there are some
>> people who will give freely of their time, effort, and resources in order
>> to help other individuals or institutions without expecting any physical
>> compensation in return. In this case, the Association trusts that there
>> will be a certain number of people who will gladly provide baked items
>> without asking to be paid for the items they provide. That's the whole
>> way
>> by which these kinds of events make money.
>>
>> If you take the opposite viewpoint and require that everybody receive
>> compensation for their contributions, this is the pure free-market
>> capitalist economy, without any not-for-profit entities whatsoever. A
>> pure
>> free-market economy is a model some people advocate, but this would make
>> it
>> impossible (essentially, by definition) for Associations and other such
>> entities to operate. So such organisations assume from the start that
>> there
>> will be those who will contribute unconditionally.
>>
>> --
>
>
>
> But isn't there a disconnect when a group of people
> donate items that cost them $10 and the organization
> prices them at $2.50? The organization receives only
> a small percentage of the donated value and there's
> absolutely NO telling whether the purchasers/beneficiaries
> are impoverished or millionaires.
>
> gloria p

It's also possible that the people pricing the products had no idea what
they cost to make. They figure a cheap boxed cake mix and frosting costs a
buck and a half on sale, plus an egg or whatever, and $2.50 seems about
right to them. Never mind that you used some exotic nuts and expensive
flavorings; either they don't know the price of those things, or they didn't
know they were in there at all.

OR -- they've done these bake sales a dozen times and they know what the
market will pay for a home-baked cake. Consumers look at those things and
they really don't care if they buy a cake or not, they're buying as a
"donation" and they have no idea if it will be edible or not, so there's a
limit to what they'll pay. You know you used quality ingredients and a good
recipe and it's going to taste good, but the person buying doesn't know
that.