A 12-year-old Wichita bakery, faced with moving a fourth time in four years, is closing instead

Denise Neil
·2 min read

Wichita has just under two more months to visit a longtime local bakery, whose owner has decided to close it rather than face another move.

Marilyn Ramsey, the owner of River City Sweet Shop at Normandie center, Central and Woodlawn, said that unless she finds a buyer, her last day in business will be July 31, and the contents of the bakery will be auctioned off on Aug. 9.

It was an agonizing decision, Ramsey said, but when she recently learned from her new landlords that they had other plans for her space and that she would have to move to another spot farther east, she decided she wasn’t up for it.

“We thought about moving to another location,” she said. “But moving four times in four years is just not good for a business.”

Previous owner Kellie Knowles first opened the bakery in Normandie Center in 2010, but then, it was called Sweetly Scrumptious. She took Ramsey on as a partner, and in 2018, they moved the bakery from Normandie Center to the Prairie village Shopping Center at 13th and Woodlawn.

Knowles left the business, and Ramsey and her new partner decided to change the name to River City Sweet Shop, which they did in June 2019. A few months later, Ramsey decided that she needed more foot traffic and moved the shop back to Normandie Center, taking over the former Seafood Shop space. Then, last fall, when Aria Bakery went out of business, Ramsey moved again, taking over the space where Sweetly Scrumptious first opened.

River City Sweet Shop owner Marilyn Ramsey said she can’t face moving a fourth time, so instead, she’s closing her baker in Normandie Center.
River City Sweet Shop owner Marilyn Ramsey said she can’t face moving a fourth time, so instead, she’s closing her baker in Normandie Center.

I don’t want to move again,” she said. “Even moving next door took a lot of time and blood, sweat and tears.”

Ramsey said that she hopes her longtime customers will come see her over the next couple of months. She’s cried several times thinking about not seeing them anymore.

Until the bakery closes, its hours will be 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Tuesdays through Fridays and 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturdays.

Ramsey said she hopes to “go out with a bang” and will be offering some specials between now and closing day.