I am working on a dinosaur themed party right now where the parents want an actual dinosaur. I could hire a performer who wears a really realistic looking dinosaur outfit, but it will cost almost $1,000.
A lot of the budget actually goes into balloons. They are one of the biggest costs and people still don't really understand that. A basic balloon arch will cost around $500 . Cakes are also expensive, they can start from around $200 because the baker is also charging for their time. My friend who is a baker is reasonable, but I have worked with very well known bakers who charge up to $850 for something like a two-tier jungle themed cake for about 60 people.
But people can make outrageous requests. I am working on a dinosaur themed party right now where the parents want an actual dinosaur. I could hire a performer who wears a really realistic looking dinosaur outfit, but it will cost almost $1,000 and the parents don't want to pay that. Sometimes I will actually hire more outrageous elements for a party myself.
That was new for me. But I'm glad it happened because it made me more conscious and aware. Now if I have a client with 50 guests I explain that they have 150 paper plates for the entire party. My relationship with clients is generally fantastic, some of them have even become friends. But whether you are a millionaire or living in social housing, a first birthday party is never for the child, it's always for the parents. They enjoy it because they see their child smiling, so it's a lot to do with the parents' emotions.