Next month will mark Grizzly’s 10th birthday and in the spirit of nostalgia and curiosity, we’ve crunched some numbers... Since Sam showed up to the Riccarton market on November 23, 2013, we’ve made a staggering 3 million baked goods requiring over 380 tonnes of flour! If all the flour bags we’ve ever used were stacked on top of each other, it would be taller than 7 Sky Towers. All 50,000 blocks of New Zealand butter we’ve used weigh about the same as 35 whole cows, and a line of every baked good we’ve sold would cover the distance between here and Queenstown.
While those figures are shocking (even to us), what’s top of mind when we reflect on the last decade is not production numbers and cow weight equivalents—it’s the community we’re part of. In a city marked by resilience, it has been our privilege to be part of the rebuilding of a vibrant food community that cares about quality and sustainability, both in terms of what we make and how we treat the members of our team. While a lot has changed for us over the last decade, it's always been the people who’ve motivated what we do. It was a small group of chefs using Sam’s sourdough in the early days who encouraged the idea of a larger wholesale operation, and since then it’s been each of our incredible team members who’ve contributed to an atmosphere of passion about what we do and why we do it. After all, hand-made artisan breads and pastries require hands (both to make and to eat). It’s the lives behind those hands that keep us going.
With all of that said, we have learned a thing or two after making over 400,000 bagels, 120,000 sandwiches, and 600,000 loaves of sourdough. And while we have a good sense of what makes a good sandwich or a delicious pastry, we aren’t fooled into thinking we don’t have much more to learn as we continue to innovate in our bakery. Our 10th Year feels momentous for us, but it’s also a way for us to celebrate you—a community that has made Grizzly what it is today, and for that we say “thank you.” Oh, and “Eat Your Crusts!”
Keep an eye out over November for a few special 10th Birthday treats—you might see some legacy products making an appearance (birthday bun anyone?), plus some extra special carbs hitting the shelves for a limited time.
