Business & Tech

The 'Cake Boss' Is Coming to Greenwich

Buddy Valastro, the king of sweet treats and star of TLC's 'Cake Boss' program, is planning to open an outpost in Greenwich this fall.


"Cake Boss" and master baker Buddy Valastro is planning to bring his tasty sweet creations and bakery to Greenwich.

In the rear of the 20 E. Elm St. building where Greenwich Time newspaper was printed nearly a half-century ago, is the future home of Carlo's Bakery, the bakery's Chief Brand Officer Adam Bourcier told Greenwich Patch on Wednesday.

"We wanted to be in a neighborhood, downtown location. We want to be like the neighborhood bakeries of years ago where you can come in and buy a birthday cake or cupcakes," Bourcier explained. "Greenwich has a great downtown."

Representatives for Bartolo 'Buddy' Valastro Jr., whose family owns Carlo's Bakery in Hoboken, NJ, plan to file for building permits from the Town of Greenwich on Friday, Bourcier said. Valastro is the star of TLC's "Cake Boss" program where he and his team create impossibly imaginative, if not over the top, custom cakes which also been featured in publications such as Modern Bride, and The Knot.

The 3,400 square-foot space will include a bakery facility, retail space and a multi-purpose room "where people can throw a birthday party, a baby shower, a team building event," Bourcier said. "We will offer classes ... offer people the experience of cake decorating to bring out their creative side … give them tools to let creativity run off."

It is those cake decorating classes under the tutelage of Valastro and his team that provided the basis for deciding to build the company's first non-New Jersey cake emporium. "We found every quarter when we reviewed the information submitted by students in the cake decorating classes, that Greenwich was in the top five or six towns where people came from," Bourcier said.

"People are willing to drive an hour and a half to come to Hoboken. Connecticut liked coming to us so we thought we'd return the favor," Bourcier added.

Bourcier said the plans are to complete construction in the building so the bakery will be operational by Thanksgiving. The bakery plans to dispense of the slate gray exterior in the rear of the building and transform it to look similar to the facilities in Hoboken, Ridgewood, and a soon-to-be-open Westfield, NJ location, Bourcier said.

And among the 15 to 20 employees in Greenwich will be Valastro who plans to occasionally film episodes of "Cake Boss" on East Elm Street, Bourcier also said.

"That’s a fabulous location. How very exciting to have a new store in town which adds to the many other new retailers that we’re seeing set up in Greenwich as well," said Greenwich Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Marcia O'Kane. "Certainly the television theme associated with this bakery will lend a special excitement to the town."

The 20 E. Elm St. building was home to daily newspaper Greenwich Time from 1937 until 2008 when the offices were moved to Old Greenwich, according to Greenwich Library Historically Speaking. A portion of the building now houses the clothier Urban Outfitters.


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