Byrd Cookie Co., the family-owned Savannah bakery best known for its jars and tins of tasty cookies, will celebrate its 90th anniversary this year by opening the first of what will be six new retail stores up and down the Eastern seaboard.
“Forty years ago, my grandfather built the Cookie Shanty in Sandfly — our very first retail store — as a way to interact with locals, tourists and the community,” said Stephanie Lindley, who took over from her father as the fourth generation CEO three years ago.
“He loved sharing stories and having everyone taste his cookies. It’s that same kind of fun environment that we want to share. We want to become a part of the community, wherever that community may be.”
The concept of looking beyond Savannah follows the success of the company’s first stand-alone retail store, which debuted in City Market two years ago.
“City Market was a game changer for us in that it was the first time we had a stand-alone retail store, one that wasn’t attached to the factory,” said Byrd Cookie president Geoff Repella. “Through that store, we’ve learned a whole lot about retail and what works, not only for us but for the Savannah visitor, the person who’s never heard of Byrd Cookie Co.
As a result of all of that, we began to think ‘If we can make this work here, we can make this work in a lot of other places.’
“So, for the last six months, we’ve been trying to refine that concept and determine how it would look,” Repella said.
The company hopes to reflect the unique Savannah experience that is Byrd’s Famous Cookies in the new stores by incorporating an interactive history of the company, a “Hot Cookie Bar” that will bake and serve hot oatmeal cookie sandwiches on site, the addition of ice cream cookie sandwiches and hand-crafted sodas, as well as all of Byrd’s traditional cookie flavors.
The first of the six identically designed stores will open next month in Pooler. The new format is designed to fit a smaller retail footprint than at the City Market store and Byrd’s flagship store, which fronts the factory on Waters Avenue.
“We hope to have these stores built within the next 24 to 36 months,” Repella said.
Lindley agreed.
“We wanted to explore this model near Savannah first, but we have already identified five more markets and are actively looking at locations,” she said.
Among the areas under consideration are sites in south Florida, Charleston, S.C.; Atlanta and the Chelsea Market area in New York City.
“We are looking at several more possibilities that we aren’t ready to disclose,” Repella said. “But, wherever we go, we want it to be controlled growth. We want to grow responsibly.
“I don’t think you’ll ever see more than a couple dozen Byrd’s Famous Cookies shops.”
The new retail expansion also will incorporate a pantry in each store featuring ready-to-eat sweets and savory treats.
“These are our favorite non-cookie snacks – things like our Broughton Blend snack mix, which is great on the porch with cocktails,” Repella said. “We want to be a go-to for easy entertaining.”
The Pooler store’s grand opening is set for Sept. 18, he said, with the next store opening around mid 2015.
“It’s going to be a lot of fun, a lot of frequent flyer miles and, of course, a lot of great cookies.”