Business on the Rise at Rustic Bakery

With another 1,500 square feet of breathing room — or baking room, to be more precise — Rustic Bakery owner Carol LeValley says she is pleased with the results of her shop's expansion on Grant Avenue in downtown Novato.

Since opening in February 2011, the bakery become a cultural hub on Grant's west end, a commercial district packed with services but few spots to relax with a tasty treat and cup of something tasty. Besides building a larger baking floor for Rustic’s expanding operations, customers will notice a more convenient and roomier sit-down space and a much larger product display area. The layout also was reconfigured to accommodate a hallway for the disabled-access restroom, LeValley said. 

Overally, the bakery has been so well-received that Rustic has doubled its sales projections over initial expectations, said LeValley, who co-owns the bakery business with her husband, Josh Harris.

With the holiday season in full bore, the two additional ovens now in service are getting a serious workout. So much so that moving the production teams will have to wait until after the first of the year.

“In time we expect to move some Larkspur employees here and likewise we will be moving some Novato employees to Larkspur,” LeValley said. 

The “team moves,” as she called them, are aimed to capture operational efficiencies. “When we opened our first store, we would alternate days when we would bake our various products,” she said. 

LeValley said demand has been so healthy that they are now baking most products every day and that they have dedicated teams for their various product lines. 

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