2024 Recap: honest reflections & hope for the future
New Year’s Eve is my favourite day of the year. I love everything that it symbolizes. It invites us to let go of what is behind us and to think about what could be ahead. I don’t necessarily love the idea of resolutions (too much pressure for my tender heart!), but I do try to set intentions–friendly guideposts to light my path into the new year.
As many of you know, Bread by Us has been actively looking for a new home since the summer of 2023. Though there is still much to be grateful for, we have felt pretty trapped in our little sardine can, desperately wanting to find a new home we can grow into. We have put offers on and engaged in negotiations on six different spaces in the last 18 months. To be honest, it has been kind of gut-wrenching and has tested my resolve over and over again.
I don’t have enough distance from this experience yet to speak of silver linings, but the struggle has no doubt helped me to hone some really important insights and questions about the future of our bakery. In the spirit of looking ahead to the new year and setting intentions, I want to share some of the insights and perhaps plant some seeds into your brilliant minds. I hope that in doing so, I can start to light a brighter path for our beloved bakery, and maybe next year, we can talk about how to get somewhere new.
Insight #1: What we aim to do at Bread by Us feels somewhat unrealistic under the crushing weight of capitalism.
The ethics of BBU’s founders and leaders are deeply anti-capitalist at their core. We focus on viability and sustainability above profits. We value livable wages and worker well-being. We want at least some of our products to be affordable to low-income people. We try not to turn people away who are in need of a free coffee or loaf of bread. We seek to source ingredients that are locally made, organically grown, and produced by values-driven businesses. Under certain economic conditions, applying our ethics is totally compatible with profitability. But as economic conditions become more challenging, upholding our own ethical standards can be at odds with the viability of the business.
I’ve recently heard the term “voluntary ethics”* used to describe the way that conscientious business owners try to overcome the greed and exploitation that pervades so many industries. When businesses invest in people and the environment in ways that other companies are not compelled to, the playing field becomes grossly uneven. This discrepancy is a heavy burden to bear long-term, and I am feeling the weight of it these days.
It feels important to name this challenge explicitly. Running an anti-capitalist business under capitalism is both rewarding and grueling.
I hum and haw sometimes about how to talk to our customers and community about our dreams and our challenges, and I’m taking a leap of faith that some of you will appreciate this window into my personal politics. I hope that by doing so, I can start to connect with you all more and work towards building a stronger, community-driven business. Which brings me to my next point.
insight #2: In order to resist the erosion of our core values, we need to re-think how we structure and run our business.
I have been thinking a lot over this past year about how to broaden BBU’s support system so that like-minded people can share this passion-project with us and help us carry it into the future. Ultimately, I think the only way to truly resist capitalism is through collective action and a commitment to collaboration.
When the time is right, I want to share some of my ideas with you about what this could look like (and invite you to share yours!), but for now I’ll say this–the business of my dreams is one that is held, nurtured, and tended to by many people. I dream of being just one of many. I think BBU has the potential to grow into a model of a truly collaborative place. We are so close, but we have a lot of work to do.
Throughout 2025, I promise to start sharing that bigger vision with you–our community–so that we can be part of something awesome together.
This past year has been equal parts reality check (i.e. our ambitions have outgrown our ability to sustain them) and growth spurt (the lessons have been plentiful). I am so glad that you’ve been with us through all of it, and I am excited to keep inviting you into this process with us.
Thank you so much for reading and listening. Wishing you all a beautiful Holiday season, and lots of love & ease in the new year.
Sincerely,
Jess Carpinone
*I came across this concept in a very interesting video called "Why there is no such thing as an ethical business under capitalism", which you can view here if you are interested.
and now for some Practical Information
We’ve created a handy calendar so you can keep track of our hours of operation and dates for placing orders over the next few weeks (see below).
Ordering for the holidays
Starting December 14th at 12pm, you will be able to place your order for the week ahead and all the way through to December 24th. We’ll be baking up a storm and have lots of goodies available, but please don’t delay!
We will follow up with each person who places an order to confirm your pick up day & time so please keep an eye out for any emails from us.
You’ll also notice that we are closing for just over a week at the beginning of January. We’ll be taking a bit of a break as a team to decompress after the busy holiday season, so don’t forget to stock up on your favourite bread.
On Tuesday December 24th at 12pm, we will update our online shop and have it all set for you to order for the remaining days of the year.