Breaking bread with the owners of Crust and BirchTree
The owners of BirchTree Bread Company are having trouble focusing. Not just the current owners, Avra Hoffman and Rob Fecteau, but also the heirs apparent, Alexis Kelleher and Nate Rossi. All four of them keep looking over their shoulders at a parade of diligent staff members wheeling heavy sacks of grain across the dining room. Fecteau practically jumps off his stool whenever a dolly goes past. It pains them all not to get up and help.
There’s no need for any of them to feel guilty about sitting down for 20 minutes — a rarity among this group. Hoffman, Fecteau, Kelleher and Rossi have interrupted their busy schedules to discuss an important transfer of power: Come summer, Kelleher and Rossi will take over operations at BirchTree Bread Company.
As owners of two Crust Artisan Bakeshop locations, the couple is well acquainted with the unique demands of running a bakery. Kelleher has taken to working 3 a.m. shifts alongside BirchTree’s baking team in preparation for the transition.
“It would have been easy to feel self-conscious coming in here as the new owners,” says Kelleher, “but everyone's so excited to explain what they do and tell me what they love about being here, which is really nice.”
The only thing emanating more strongly from BirchTree Bread Company than the aroma of fresh country loaves is a culture of positivity. “Our team here deserves credit for how amazing they've been, opening their arms to these guys,” Hoffman says, gesturing to Kelleher and Rossi. “We did a meet and greet a few weeks ago and the staff was so excited. Our management team Mike Muscarella, Matt Villavicencio, and Louis Boykins are ready to back Alexis and Nate 100 percent.”
Kelleher observes they’ve found more common ground than not. “Even just the way we take care of employees and work as a team to really value everyone,” she says, “Rob and Avra have cultivated a familiar culture with good working conditions where people want to excel at their jobs because they're passionate about what they're doing.”
“Happy people are an important ingredient,” adds Rossi.
In many ways, the 2020 expansion of Crust prepared Kelleher and Rossi for the addition of BirchTree. “Opening on West Boylston street was a big step for us,” recalls Kelleher. “That experience really changed my understanding of running a business and how to best spend my time.”
The changeover may very well be more concerning for BirchTree’s loyal customer base than it is for the staff. Despite promises that nothing drastic is about to transpire and the quality will remain the same, change of any kind can be difficult for the public to embrace. “Especially coming out of COVID,” recognizes Hoffman, “they're looking for consistency.”
For one thing, the Canal District looks far different than it did when BirchTree first opened its doors in 2014. Development is not slowing down anytime soon. “Right across the street is all going to be housing, and down the road is going to be the new hotel,” says Fecteau, pointing out onto Green Street, “As an up and coming neighborhood, there's a lot of unknowns, most of which will be beneficial.”
Hoffman gushes about how much Kelleher and Rossi are going to love their new neighbors. “Everybody in the building is amazing,” she says. “They're all super welcoming and friendly and they've become good friends of ours since we've been here.”
Most of all, Hoffman wants the community to look favorably upon BirchTree’s next chapter. She and Fecteau certainly do. “It seems that when people open a business, they're expected to operate it for the rest of their lives,” says Hoffman. “We want people to see that you can grow a business, sustain it, make it successful, and leave it on a high note.”
Fecteau and Hoffman assure the staff that they’ll be on call, should BirchTree’s new owners need anything. “From the very beginning of our conversations with Nate and Alexis, it's been super reassuring that they appreciate what we've started and are looking forward to taking that to the next level while maintaining what we've already put in place,” he says, beaming at the new owners with confidence.
Kelleher is equally pleased to have a like-minded couple to confide in. “I feel like when I’m talking to Avra, we’re both speaking the same language,” she says. “I don’t feel that way when I’m talking about my business with almost anyone else.”
Our meeting wraps up just as the last sack of flour gets carted to the kitchen. Fecteau looks at it longingly, sorry to have missed the delivery but thrilled by what it will become. Tonight is pizza night, a BirchTree institution.
When asked if Hoffman and Fecteau will start a new business venture in the future, they laugh and dole out tight-lipped smiles.
“No plans for now,” says Fecteau. “We’re excited to clear our minds, recalibrate, and take the summer off.” As the saying goes, man shall not live by bread alone.
This article originally appeared on Telegram & Gazette: Breaking bread with the owners of Crust and BirchTree
