Here's what you need to know about Character-themed cake kits.
At Clever Crumb, we absolutely love creativity, fun cakes, and bringing joy to celebrations of all kinds. We know that many people, especially kids, dream of cakes that feature their favourite characters from TV shows, movies, video games, or comics. Whether it’s Elsa, Spider-Man, or Bluey, these iconic characters are a big part of our culture and celebrations.
However, we often get asked, “Can you make me a cake kit with [insert character here]?”, and the answer is, "No, we can’t". Not because we don’t want to, but because we’re legally not allowed to. Here’s why...
Character Cakes and the Law in Australia
When we talk about “character-themed cakes,” we’re referring to cakes that feature protected characters or logos from popular franchises, like Disney, Marvel, Nickelodeon. These characters are protected under copyright and trademark laws in Australia (and around the world). That means they are someone else’s intellectual property (IP), and using them for commercial purposes, like selling a cake kit, custom cake, or topper that includes that character without permission is illegal.
Why We Can't Use These Characters
Under Australian Copyright and Trademark Law, it’s illegal to:
- Copy, reproduce, or sell a character or logo without permission
- Use a protected design or name in a commercial product (like a cake kit or topper)
- Profit from someone else's intellectual property without a proper license
That includes putting a character image on a cake topper, printing it on packaging, or even designing a cake to look like a well-known character and selling that as a service or product.
Even if the design is handmade or drawn in a different style, if it still resembles the original protected character, it could be considered infringement.
The difference between personal and business use
Some individuals might create a character-themed cake at home for a private birthday party. While that might be okay for personal use, it's completely different when you’re selling that design or using it to promote your business. Using someone else’s intellectual property without a license could result in legal action, fines, or even being forced to close down.
“But other cake makers do it!”
You would have encountered many other businesses offering character-themed cakes or cake kits. Unfortunately, that doesn’t make it legal. Many small businesses either don’t realise they’re breaking the law or take the risk anyway.
At Clever Crumb, we believe in doing things the right way. If you see any themed cake kits in our collection, know that we have either sought permission from the owner to use their design or there are no current restrictions in place. We are a creative business, and we want to show respect to other creators. That means following the law, even if it means getting less customers and turning down some custom cake kit requests.
Here's what we can offer
While we can’t use licensed characters in the design, that doesn’t mean your cake can’t be amazing! Here’s what we offer instead:
- Custom designs based on your party theme. Add your own favourite licensed character to the cake once made.
- Colour schemes and styles that complement your child’s favourite things
- Personalised cake kits with names, messages, and custom decorations
- Creative alternatives that capture the feel of a theme without infringing on IP rights
Want a Frozen-style cake without Elsa? We can create a magical snowflake and ice-inspired cake kit. Dreaming of a superhero party? We can do bold, comic-book-style designs using generic symbols and colours without copying any logos or characters. There are so many other ways to achieve a theme. Adding your own licensed characters is a great way to bring a theme together.
Wrapping it all up
We know it can be disappointing to hear "no" to a character cake request. But we hope this post helps you understand why we make that choice, and how it protects both our business and the creators of the characters we all love.
We’re always happy to work with you on a design that’s fun, exciting, and totally unique without crossing legal lines.
If you have any questions or want to talk about a theme idea, feel free to reach out. We’d love to help you create something special. Contact us.