Newark residents Kathy and Robert Cappiello were unable to get their fill of homemade freshly baked Great Harvest Bread, until one month ago when they rose to the occasion bringing that straight-from-the-oven taste to Delaware.
The Cappiello’s Stanton store is Delaware’s first and only Great Harvest. Robert said Delaware was in need of a local franchise because the closest ones were in Villanova, Pa., Kennett, Pa. and Cherry Hill, NJ.
The couple always thought it would be nice to own their own business, Robert said, so after years in the beleaguered banking industry, Robert was ready for a change of scenery. Kathy loved her job as a preschool teacher, but knew she couldn’t balance having
her own business, keep her job, and manage family life.
“Our son is still involved in his activities and our daughter is still involved in her activities,” Kathy said. “We talked about it for a little bit, but I think mentally we had already made that change. We were ready, and you just have to jump into it with both feet.”
Kathy said their vision was to become the hometown bakery in a tight knit community.
“We’re happy,” she said. “We want to get to know everyone by name.”
In fact, it’s already happening.
“We’re getting a following and that’s how we envisioned it,” he said. “People stop in on their way home from work and pick up dinner.
There are a lot of offices around here and a lot of them are customers. It’s a busy area and close to home.”
The store has a warm, contemporary feeling to make it an inviting place. Robert said.
“It’s an upbeat relaxing place,” he said. “You can bring the kids. You will get a smile and a free sample every time.”
Robert said the special thing that separates their store from others is that all the bread is homemade and baked in the morning and sold that day.
“We make everything from scratch,” he said. “We sell all the bread within 24 hours or we donate it to the Food Bank of Delaware or the Ronald McDonald House. It is good for seven days and can also be frozen. We’re able to help local charities and we’re happy to do it. We wanted to do something the community would like.”
Robert said they want feedback from customers, so they can change they menu accordingly and accommodate the public.
Fulfilling the dream of being business owners has been great, the couple agreed.
“It’s a fun environment,” Robert said. “I like to get up and enjoy coming to work every day.”
