After 25 years of baking bread in St. Louis, franchisees Steve and Alecia Jawor are retiring and closing Great Harvest Bread Co. (7360 Manchester) in Maplewood. The bakery’s final day of service is September 19.
The closure does not mean the end of Great Harvest in the St. Louis area, though. The 15-year-old Kirkwood location of Great Harvest Bread Co. (125 W. Argonne), a separately owned and operated franchise, remains open.
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The Jawors announced the closure on the bakery’s website over the weekend, thanking customers for allowing them to be part of family traditions and holiday memories over the past quarter-century. The couple invited customers to stop by during the bakery’s final weeks, when they’ll bring back some longtime favorites and offer Maplewood Great Harvest T-shirts as souvenirs.
The Jawors signed off with a bit of bakery humor: “Retirement is bittersweet,” they wrote. “It’s been a slice.”
The Backstory
The concept is built around breads made with whole-grain wheat from Montana. At the Maplewood location, a rotating baking schedule has included such staples as Honey Whole Wheat, Cinnamon Chip, Dakota, Nine Grain, rye, and sourdough, along with seasonal breads. The bakery also offers cinnamon rolls, scones, muffins, other baked goods, and some of the best oatmeal raisin cookies in town. The Maplewood location shares space with La Cosecha Coffee Roasters, adding a full coffeehouse component to the neighborhood bakery.
Great Harvest Bread Co. is part of a national franchise with approximately 150 locations, with individual bakeries being locally owned and operated. The Jawors’ Great Harvest story began when they purchased an existing Great Harvest franchise in Clayton and relocated the bakery to Olivette. Over the years, they operated Great Harvest in both Olivette and Maplewood, ultimately spending 25 years in the business.
Kirkwood franchisee Paul Barkofske wished the Jawors well in retirement and offered a simple reassurance to Great Harvest regulars: “There’s plenty of bread for everybody.”
