The Good Bread Co., Taylor, Mich., is getting better all the time, despite the challenges it has faced during the past three years. Of course, there was the COVID-19 pandemic that brought revenue down 80% in April 2020 for the baking company, known then as Michigan Bread Co., that mostly served foodservice customers. Despite that hit, however, the company has not only persevered but grown during the past three years. 

“When you’re in the weeds day-to-day, you don’t have an opportunity to take a step back and see how much or how quickly things have changed,” said Spiros Assimacopoulos, president and chief executive officer, The Good Bread Co.

In addition to expanding its customer base and all the pivots associated with 2020, Michigan Bread Co. completed its first major acquisition in September 2021 by purchasing. Minneapolis-based Franklin Street Bakery, an SQF-certified, wholesale baking company. Like Michigan Bread, Franklin Street also specialized in providing artisan bread, sliced bread, buns and hoagies for restaurant and other foodservice operations. 

With the acquisition came the rebrand to The Good Bread Co., a more intentional approach to company culture, and a closer look at product portfolio and operations. Acquiring an entire new bakery comes with more customers and geographic reach, and therefore ample opportunities for more growth. 

“Our goal is to build a great company, and to do that, you need resources,” Mr. Assimacopoulos explained. “You can either bring in investors and capital, or you can grind it out, and that’s what we’ve done since day one. Growing and having more resources and revenue helps bring a company to a critical mass of capabilities to have the right equipment to do what’s necessary to have a great, modern company. Growth takes time and money; it’s not easy, and growth through acquisition can be a bit of a shortcut to get to that place.”

And all that growth requires the operational and equipment infrastructure to support it. In addition to the acquisition and name change, The Good Bread Co. is also taking steps to invest in equipment and processes that will take it from a batch artisan process to a continuous artisan process. It’s been a journey to climb such a learning curve, but Mr. Assimacopoulos is determined, knowing that the continuous process will unlock a world of efficiencies and opportunities. 

This article is an excerpt from the October 2022 issue of Baking & Snack. To read the entire feature on The Good Bread Co., click here.