Rose Continues to Rise
Photos by Michael Piazza
When a popular bakery changes ownership, there’s frequent worry that its character might change too—and not always for the better. Not so for Rose 32, the 14-year-old Gilbertville bakery café whose baguettes, crusty breads, European-style pastries and imaginative sandwich combinations are beloved by locals. The bakery’s popularity has also made it a tourist attraction, drawing day trippers to the tiny Central Mass town. The new owners have a strong sense of the bakery’s image and reputation and plan to build on it rather than change it. They’re keeping Rose 32 in the family.
A year ago, when founders Glenn and Cindy Mitchell decided to retire and put the bakery up for sale, the best offer came from their son, Henry, and his partner, Hannah Regin. Henry literally grew up in the business and followed in his father’s footsteps, getting professional training as a baker. He also shares his father’s passion for baking: “You have to be passionate to get up at 2:30 in the morning to start baking,” he says.
Hannah had started working at the bakery as a college student. She made her way up from dishwasher to Rose 32’s manager of sales and marketing after she earned an MBA. Hannah and Henry met at the bakery and share a dedication to keeping it rooted in the community.
“Henry and Hannah are keeping our baking tradition alive,” says Cindy Mitchell. ”They bring a bit of the past with a foot firmly in the future.”
Rose 32 opened in 2010 after the Mitchell family moved to Massachusetts from California. Glenn and Cindy, both professionally trained bakers, grew their business from a small bakery in Oakland to a corporate giant supplying bread to Trader Joe’s, Costco and other supermarkets in 27 states.
“When we sold our baking business, we thought we were done,” says Cindy. But, a few years after settling in the nearby town of Hardwick, Glenn found an abandoned gas station, renovated it and had it fitted out with a 20-ton, wood-fired brick oven. Within weeks of Rose 32’s opening, word had spread and lines of customers stretched far into the parking lot.
“We were in our mid-50s when we started Rose 32 and the plan was to do it for 10 years, then retire,” Cindy says. But 10 years later, Covid hit and the bakery closed down for months.
Dealing with the pandemic, the Mitchells made a lot of changes in the way the bakery reached its customers. First came a walk-up window for takeout only. Then they adjusted the website so customers could order online. They increased the number of tables outside and gradually, over several months, opened up the main building again.
As the bakery got back on its feet, Cindy and Glenn began to revisit their plans to retire. When Henry and Hannah approached them with a plan to take on ownership of the bakery, they became the elder Mitchells’ exit strategy. In 2023, Henry and Hannah, who’d been together for five years, formalized their partnership when Henry proposed during a trip to Italy.
“It all came together,” says Cindy. “Henry needed someone as dedicated to the business as he was. You can’t do it all yourself. And we were mentally ready to sell.”
Over the next few months Cindy and Glenn became mentors as Henry and Hannah took on more responsibility for the bakery. In November 2023, with assistance from the Small Business Administration and a bank loan, they became Rose 32’s second-generation owners.
Glenn admits the sale was, in many ways, a relief. “We’ve been doing this forever,” he says. “I’ve been a baker since I was 13 years old.”
Cindy notes a bit of empty nest feelings. “The bakery was such a part of our lives; it was like one of our children. But it is a relief that it’s in such good hands.” The proud parents note that Henry and Hannah were well equipped to take on the bakery.
“Henry watched our bakery business grow on the West Coast,” says Cindy. “ He was there the day we opened our 65,000-square-foot plant. I have a photo of him standing at the end of the 80-foot assembly line tunnel waiting for the first loaf of bread to come through.”
Henry always loved learning how to fix things, his mother says. “When he was little, he wore a tool belt that was half as big as he was.”
As the owner of a small business, knowing how to fix things is imperative. “When the fluorescent light fixture in the display case goes out, you better be able to fix it yourself,” Henry says. “You can’t afford to wait for a repair person to do it.”
Hannah is skilled at managing the front end of the business. She keeps track of the bakery’s longtime customers, knows their coffee preferences and what they like to order. Working behind the counter on busy weekends, she’s a natural at introducing the bakery to newcomers and making them feel welcome. One of her strategies is maintaining a strong online presence.
“Everything Henry and the staff bake is so picture worthy,” she says. “I post photos and they get such a good response.” Hannah also keeps an eye on what’s trending online. “If I see something that sparks an idea, I take it to Henry and he makes it happen.”
The couple haven’t made any big changes; the Rose 32 brand is still the same, but they have refined it. Their trip to Italy gave Henry and Hannah inspiration for the café. “We found such an appreciation for good-quality ingredients; a simple ham sandwich on a good baguette becomes something special,” Hannah says.
Henry notes that “a lot of thought goes into how we serve our sandwiches. The house turkey, for example, goes better with our nine grain walnut bread and the turkey BLT is served on toasted cranberry raisin bread, so there’s a pop of sweet and salty flavor.”
He and Hannah see the café as a way to showcase Rose 32’s 19 varieties of bread, which range from French baguettes and sourdough made with locally grown whole wheat, to multigrain ciabatta made with sunflower and poppy seeds and nine additional grains. Henry’s favorite combines potatoes baked in the bakery’s kitchen with rosemary for a hearty take on potato rosemary bread.
Rose 32’s new owners have added to the baking staff, which allows Henry to be a manager as well as a baker. ”It’s fun to work with other bakers,” he says. “They often bring different perspectives and new approaches.”
Henry notes that he doesn’t necessarily have to be the one making the bread, “but I need to know how it’s done. Bread dough is basically flour, water, salt and yeast; I find it fascinating that from these ingredients you can make so many different kinds of loaves.”
A big challenge in managing the bakery is anticipating demand. “We can be super busy one day and slow the next,” Hannah says. Online ordering helps; so does the bakery’s limited schedule. It’s only open three days a week, from 9am to 3pm, Thursday through Saturday. “Having Sundays off to spend time with family and friends is a big quality-of-life plus. It makes such a difference for your personal life,” she adds.
Early in the week is when the staff prepares for those three busy days at week’s end. On Monday, Henry makes croissant dough; on Tuesday, ciabatta dough and cakes are started. Wednesday is for finishing cakes, croissants and ciabatta loaves. Bread is baked daily and the café menus are created early in the week.
Rose 32 sources local ingredients whenever possible. Their bread flour comes from Ground Up, purveyors of stone milled flours in Holyoke. “I like to blend flours,” says Henry, “so I will combine white with whole wheat for a lighter bread or add some rye flour to the cranberry raisin bread.”
Although Rose 32 is miles from any large city, it attracts an impressive base of fans who line up for bread or pastries such as chocolate or almond croissants, fruit-filled Danish, green onion biscuits and kouign (pronounced “queen”) amann, a flaky, buttery cross between a croissant and a cinnamon bun. There are communal tables inside the bakery to encourage conversation among customers.
“Our regular customers are always making suggestions and recommendations to people who are new to the bakery,” says Hannah. So is the friendly staff; many of them have been with the bakery since it reopened after the pandemic shutdown.
“We have a great staff,” Hannah says. “They all have a passion for food or baking and they are proud of the bread we make and food we serve. This is not a place where employees clock in and clock out.”
Ever since it opened 14 years ago, Rose 32 made its staff and customers feel both welcome and appreciated. With its second-generation owners, the tradition continues.
This story appeared in the Fall 2024 issue.
