Hospitality & events
MTD software for bakers and cake makers.
Keep creating. Make the records less of a recipe.
Wedding deposits, ingredient orders and postal sales can quickly outgrow a notebook. Avona helps home bakers organise the money behind each order alongside their kitchen's business costs.
- Who it is for
- Bakers and cake makers working as sole traders, managing their own business records and MTD for Income Tax updates.
- Available now
- Digital records, bank feeds, statement imports, transaction categorisation and quarterly self-employment updates. Pro adds customer invoicing, VAT accounting and reporting.
- Monthly price
- From £15/month for Lite. Pro is £20/month.
- Free trial
- Full access for 7 days. No credit card required.
- Annual-return limitations
- Quarterly updates do not replace your annual tax return. HMRC lists annual-return items including PAYE income, interest, dividends and pensions as in development. Check the listing and confirm support for your income sources before relying on Avona for your annual return.
Making Tax Digital
It’s what comes in.
Before costs go out.
Cake sales and other baking receipts accumulate before ingredients, packaging and utilities. A busy order book may cross an MTD threshold even where individual cakes have a modest margin.
Understand Making Tax Digital →When does MTD apply?
Combined qualifying self-employment and property income, before expenses:
- Over £50,000 in 2024/25
- From 6 April 2026
- Over £30,000 in 2025/26
- From 6 April 2027
- Over £20,000 in 2026/27
- From 6 April 2028
Eligibility and exemptions matter. These are income thresholds, not tax-free allowances.
Check HMRC’s eligibility guidance ↗From the work to your records
Clear records for your custom celebration cake.
Bring the evidence into Avona, review the suggested categories and check the figures before submitting. These three examples show the records behind your custom celebration cake, shared purchases and a custom cake booking.
| What you bring | How you use Avona | What you check |
|---|---|---|
| £340 for your custom celebration cake £95 spent on ingredients and cake packaging | Connect your bank or import the payment, then upload the invoice or receipt for ingredients and cake packaging. Review the income and the purchase as separate records. | Keep £340 as the sale and the £95 cost separately. The £245 left after this cost is not turnover. Check that the spending is eligible for your business. |
| £100 mixed purchase £80 for ingredients for a customer order; £20 for supplies for family baking | Upload the itemised receipt and review the suggested category. Identify ingredients for a customer order separately from supplies for family baking. | Only the eligible £80 business portion belongs in business costs. Exclude the £20 personal purchase, and check that importing both the bank transaction and the receipt has not counted the spending twice. |
| £200 booking payment, then £600 £800 agreed total | Keep the agreement for a custom cake booking and review both customer receipts against it. Bring in the payments through your bank feed or statement import. | The two payments account for the £800 total. Do not count the full invoice again as another receipt. Use your accounting method for timing, and retain evidence of any later cancellation or refund. |
Keep supporting documents alongside your figures, review business use and apply your accounting method consistently. HMRC: keeping business records ↗
The costs behind your work
Six expenses worth
keeping records for.
Examples for bakers and cake makers. Claim only eligible business costs; mixed use, equipment and your accounting method can change the treatment.
Baking ingredients
Specialist decorating tools
Business mixers
Cake boxes and packaging
Business kitchen utility share
Order-management software
One thing to watch
There is no blanket home-kitchen deduction
Separate household and business use with a reasonable method. Keep ingredient evidence too, rather than treating your whole grocery or energy bill as a baking expense.
HMRC: business use of your home ↗Fit the admin around the work
A routine around your custom celebration cake.
Match deposits and balances to orders, capture packaging receipts and review your kitchen allocation before sending the quarterly summary.
Capture the supporting documents
Upload receipts or invoices for ingredients and cake packaging. Keep the date, supplier and amount legible, and distinguish ingredients for a customer order from supplies for family baking.
How document capture works →Reconcile your custom celebration cake payments
Review each customer receipt against the work it covers. Keep the breakdown for a custom cake booking available alongside the bank entry, so fees, refunds or timing differences can be explained.
How bank review works →Review before you submit
Review Avona AI’s suggested categories, check that your custom celebration cake income is complete, and remove duplicate or personal spending. Keep the evidence for a custom cake booking ready for your annual-return review too.
Before you get started
Questions from bakers and cake makers.
Does MTD apply to everyone in this profession?
No. This page covers bakers and cake makers working as sole traders. Your start date depends on combined qualifying self-employment and property income before expenses, and any exemptions. Employment and limited-company work have different reporting arrangements.
Can I claim all the household energy used by my kitchen?
Keep a reasonable basis for business use and review it alongside your accounting method. Baking at home does not make the entire household energy bill a business cost.
How do I record a custom cake booking?
Example: £200 booking payment, then £600 (£800 agreed total). The two payments account for the £800 total. Do not count the full invoice again as another receipt. Use your accounting method for timing, and retain evidence of any later cancellation or refund.
Which bookkeeping issue should I watch for?
There is no blanket home-kitchen deduction. Separate household and business use with a reasonable method. Keep ingredient evidence too, rather than treating your whole grocery or energy bill as a baking expense.
Can I keep using my existing spreadsheet?
Yes. Bring your custom celebration cake income records and evidence of ingredients and cake packaging into Avona using supported spreadsheet uploads. Check dates, categories, personal spending and duplicates against the original documents before you approve the records.
Do quarterly updates complete my annual tax return?
No. You still need the annual tax return and any relevant adjustments or other income. HMRC currently lists annual-return items including PAYE income, interest, dividends and pensions as in development for Avona. Confirm support for your own income sources and circumstances before relying on Avona for the annual return.
Built for the way you earn
Give your baking records a simpler recipe.
Choosing Avona
Your questions, answered.
Can I create customer invoices?
Yes. You can create customer invoices with Avona Pro.
What if I am VAT-registered?
Full VAT accounting is available with Avona Pro, so you can manage your VAT-registered business with Avona.
Can my accountant review my records?
Yes. You can connect your Avona account to your bookkeeper or accountant so they can review your records.
Can I use my phone on site?
Yes. Every feature has a mobile-friendly version, so you can manage your accounts from your phone while you are on the move.
Can I keep using my personal bank account?
Yes. Avona supports Open Banking connections and PDF bank statement uploads. You can clearly separate personal and business transactions to keep your business records organised.