Mile Hi's English muffin line produces more than 1,500 dozen muffins per hour.
Great wide open
McDonald’s and Mile Hi are a lot alike in that they are both long-standing companies with a knack for innovating.
The bakery already has withstood the odds, as very few family-owned bakeries survive the third generation these days. During his tenure, Mr. Taddonio brought the most growth and innovation to the bakery … and went one better by bringing his daughters into the fold. Today, Mile Hi is in its fourth generation of leadership with Ms. Taddonio Brenzikofer and Ms. Taddonio Mullins at the helm.
Mile Hi Bakery is not finished growing, but where the company goes from here is not entirely up to the Taddonios.
“We have a ways to go,” Mr. Taddonio said. “We have space available, but what we do with it will be consumer- and customer-driven.”
As Colorado’s economy is growing, and Q.S.R.s like McDonald’s continue to innovate, “we’re in a good position to keep up with that demand,” he said.
As long as McDonald’s maintains a pattern of new product innovation, there’s no stopping what Mile Hi can produce for the restaurant … and what new opportunities the bakery can create for itself. McDonald’s currently accounts for about 60% of Mile Hi Bakery’s bun business, and it recently was awarded English muffin business for another large Q.S.R. chain for the Denver market.
Some even speculate that McDonald’s might expand its dessert offerings or move into croissant-based sandwiches, so flexibility will be top of mind for Mile Hi when the next opportunity knocks. Mr. Taddonio knows that from experience.
“You have to have the capital available and be ready to jump on any opportunity,” he said.
