New Columbus bakery to start selling baked treats soon. But they’re not for humans

The baked goods offered at this new Columbus bakery are not intended for humans.

But the goods are quite fit for the canine crowd.

Franchise owners Tracy and Joey St. John hope to start selling fresh-baked treats and other pet supplies in Three Dog Bakery on Feb. 15 downtown on Broadway near Agave Bar and Grill.

“We chose this business because it’s something that makes us happy,” Joey said. “Our pets, our dogs, make us happy.”

Three Dog Bakery was founded in 1989, and now has 50 bakeries in the franchise. The Columbus location will be the second one in Georgia.

Despite being 35-years-old, Tracy said, Three Dog Bakery is not a big corporation. The franchise is run with a ‘hometown-feel’, she said, and they hope to keep this energy at the Columbus location.

“We want to know our customers by name,” Tracy said. “Or at least the dogs by name.”

Let dogs do the shopping

Inside the bakery, humans and their dogs can explore the self-serve treats or walk over to the display cases where puppies can sniff out their favorite treats. Tracy and Joey want pets using their senses to find items that interest them whether it’s a treat’s smell or how a toy squeaks or crinkles.

“We definitely want the dog to do the shopping if the dog is with their human,” Tracy said.

Along with fresh treats, the store carries dog toys and a few dog food brands that include dry, canned, raw and freeze-dried foods. It will also offer Three Dog Bakery branded pre-packaged treats.

“You might have seen a minimal assortment in places like Publix or Target,” Tracy said. “This is going to be the whole variety of what is made within the Three Dog brand.”

Seasonal treats will be available at the bakery, and treats are also customizable, she said. Customers can get treats decorated for their pup’s birthday or have their name written on the treat.

All of the treats are made with human ingredients like rice flour and wheat flour, Tracy said. The coloring used for decorating are all plant-based.

“Every single thing going into these bakery treats are healthy for the dogs and actually edible for humans,” Tracy said. “But humans might be a little disappointed because there’s no sugar.”

There are no products available for cats, she said, but if customers come in and show enough interest this could change in the future.

Bringing a love of pets to Downtown Columbus

One of the first things Tracy and Joey did after getting married was get a dog.

Joey previously ran a doggy daycare business in Atlanta, while Tracy worked with the Atlanta Humane Society for a number of years.

After meeting in college, Tracy introduced Joey to her hometown of Columbus. When they decided to have kids about 22 years ago, the couple moved out of Atlanta back to Columbus.

Tracy and Joey owned and operated another franchise in Columbus, JumpBunch, for over 10 years before selling it to an employee in 2020. So, they had experience working with franchises before decided to open Three Dog Bakery, Joey said, a store they’d become familiar with years before.

Whilst living in Columbus, the two became inspired by the growth they witnessed downtown, Tracy said. And they began considering what the area was missing. It was an experience for dogs.

“Downtown is such an amazing destination now,” Joey said. “. . . We saw the opportunity. You can’t come downtown without seeing people with their dogs.”

Fetch Park is nearby in Midcity Yards, Tracy said, but the couple wanted to bring an experience for pets to Broadway. People can already sit at human restaurants with their docs, she said, but Three Dog Bakery is made specifically for dogs.

Although dogs are welcome in the bakery,Tracy and Joey ask pet parents to be responsible by making sure their pets are leashed and at least tolerant to other pooches and humans.

“We want this to be a place your dog pulls you into,” Joey said. “(We want to) become a part of this downtown community.”