CLEVELAND, Ohio — A west-side Cleveland bakery is facing an unusual dilemma. Art of Bread is open for business, but the coffee shop where it’s located has been closed for weeks.
“Slight problem – the coffee shop is gone. They closed. They’re moving out, they’re not open to the public anymore. There is no coffee shop,” Victoria Narby said in a video on TikTok.
@artofbread.bakery Hi I’m Victoria… i have a bakery in Cleveland and i need customers :)
The bakery owner recently posted the plea, calling on Clevelanders to keep supporting her business.
“I really just was in a moment where I wanted to be seen and heard,” Narby told News 5 of the video that now has more than 14,000 likes. “Honestly, I felt like I was screaming into the void. I had no idea I was going to go viral.”
Narby moved into the 110 sq. ft. kitchen inside the building on W. 114th St. and Berea Rd. in August 2023. The former chemist had formerly been creating French macarons and other bakery goods in her spare time.
“Being laid off during the pandemic, it went from being a hobby to a business as I left the field that I was in,” she explained. “The argument can be made that it’s very similar to chemistry.”
As an in-house baker for Scoot Cold Brew, Art of Bread supplied the coffee shop with bagels, muffins and other items on a regular basis while also fulfilling online orders and selling at pop-up and tasting events.
She said it was clear the coffee shop, located in a largely industrial section of the west side, was struggling to bring in customers.
“Especially during the wintertime, we just couldn’t generate the foot traffic that we needed to keep going. And ultimately they closed their doors to the public back in February,” she said. “It’s definitely a unique situation because now I’m just a bakery inside of a building.”
On its social media, the out-of-state-owned coffee shop said it would be ceasing operations and sales in Cleveland.
The Westown Community Development Corporation, which covers a wide swath of the west side, from West 90th to West 130th Streets and Berea Road to Linndale, said it was disappointed to hear of Scoot Cold Brew closing. Executive director Rose Zitiello said supporting small businesses is key to keeping the neighborhood vibrant and unique.
“When we see a new business moving into bricks and mortar, maybe from a home-based business, it’s very exciting. It’s inspirational for us,” said Zitiello.
Since posting her dilemma on social media, Narby said she’s received an influx of new orders and inquiries, as well as business propositions.
“It’s really amazing and life-changing, really, to know that people out there in the world really care about what I do,” she said.
She explained the bakery is not currently in a position to expand into the larger retail space, but she is heartened by the outpouring of community support for her small, locally-owned business.
“At the end of the day, you’re helping your neighbors, your friends, your family, your cousins,” she said. “The more we can help each other, the better we’re all going to be.”
Art of Bread is not able to accept walk-in orders at its bakery site, but you can order items for pickup on its website here. Narby is planning a pop-up tasting event outside the bakery on May 4 and also plans to host baking classes. You can find details about upcoming events on the bakery's website, Facebook page and Instagram.
