Since debuting in 1957, Publix Bakery has become iconic throughout the Southeast. But how much has changed over the years?
Building a labor of ‘loaf’
As Publix continued to grow in the 1950s, our founder, Mr. George, and then-Publix President Joe Blanton became interested in starting a bakery business to add to the offerings for our customers. In 1957, the 1st Publix Danish Bakery opened next door to the Publix store in the Southgate Shopping Center in Lakeland, Florida. In fact, some recipes created for that 1st bakery haven’t changed one bit!
“Our Italian bread, French bread, French hamburger buns and hoagie rolls were made with the same recipe in 1957 as they are today,” said Business Development Director John Buchanan. “And our bakers still use the same traditional bread-making techniques we’ve been using for over 66 years to make all our fresh breads and rolls.”
‘Rye-sing’ to the challenge
The Danish Bakery name was dropped in 1993, but through the years, what we now know as Publix Bakery is in each of our more than 1,350 stores and offers a wide variety of products. While some of the processes have changed to keep up with our growth, our main strategy is to provide the best and freshest products to customers.
“Our bakers and decorators make us stand out,” said John. “Unlike much of our competition, we have associates in the stores actually making products every day. It’s one of the 1st scents customers smell when they enter our stores!”
While our bakery teams make some of our products daily in-store, our 2 bakery plants make items like pies, muffins and cakes. These products ship to stores daily, ensuring bakery associates still have time to provide the best customer service.
“Customers and associates alike care about the personal touch,” said John. “Things like our free cookie program for kids and custom decorated cakes give our associates a chance to connect with our customers and make delicious memories.”
We’re on a ‘roll’
While staying true to our roots, our teams continue to look for ways to remain up to date with trends and create innovative items.
“Our development teams started in retail and worked their way up through the bakery, so they know our business,” said John. “They monitor flavor trends and what our competition is testing to see what opportunities we have for innovation.”
One of the more recent products born from this innovation is our Tutto Pugliese bread.
“Tutto Pugliese is a perfect example of how we are evolving,” said John. “This bread may be new to many of our customers, but with the added step of hand-kneading the bread, it gives a classic hometown Publix taste that keeps our customers coming back.”
Find out why Mr. George wanted fresh baked goods in every Publix by reading about the history of Publix Bakery.
