Zingerman’s Bakehouse
Zingerman's Bakehouse is an artisanal bakery founded in 1992 in Ann Arbor, MI, producing artisan breads, pastries, cookies, and custom cakes via a flagship retail shop, a wholesale delivery network serving 110+ Southeastern Michigan partners, a Cake Studio for custom celebration cakes, and BAKE! teaching classes, operating as a core business within the Zingerman's Community of Businesses.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1992
- HeadquartersAnn Arbor, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingHardware or Manufacturing
What Zingerman’s Bakehouse does
Zingerman's Bakehouse is an artisanal bakery founded in 1992 in Ann Arbor, Michigan, operating a single flagship retail location at 3711 Plaza Drive that is open daily from 7am to 7pm. The company produces a broad catalog of baked goods — artisan breads (Rustic Italian, Sourdough, Rye, Challah), pastries, cookies, bagels, pretzels, pies, ready-made cakes, and a lunch program of sandwiches, soups, and salads — alongside custom-designed celebration cakes through its Cake Studio. Core production relies on traditional techniques including in-house stone milling of regional grains, a 15-hour fermentation process for Rustic Italian bread, lye-dipped Bavarian pretzels, and pâte à choux pastry work, with no disclosed AI/ML or automation technology investments.
The business operates four distinct revenue streams. Retail sales serve walk-in and online-ordering (Toast platform) consumers. Wholesale B2B delivers fresh baked goods to 110+ partner locations across Southeastern Michigan, requiring minimum $160 per order and 5 orders per week ($800/week floor). The Cake Studio sells custom-designed cakes starting at $150 with a 25% deposit and delivery up to 2 hours away. BAKE!, the onsite teaching bakery, offers hands-on baking classes both in-person and virtually. Adjacent revenue lines include cookbooks, bake-at-home frozen products, organic stone-milled flours, pantry items, and gift cards — the last two channels distributed nationwide via Zingerman's Mail Order.
Zingerman's Bakehouse is a core member of the Zingerman's Community of Businesses, a collection of 10+ food-related companies (Delicatessen, Coffee Company, Creamery, Roadhouse, Cornman Farms, Catering & Events, Greyline, Mail Order, ZingTrain) that share common mission, vision, and guiding principles. The legal entity is Zing IP, LLC, headquartered in Michigan. Current co-managing partners Amy Emberling and Jaison Restrick both started as hourly employees, reflecting an internal apprenticeship culture. The company is privately held with no disclosed venture capital or private equity investment.
Zingerman’s Bakehouse firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Zingerman’s Bakehouse
- Legal name
- Zingerman's Bakehouse (Zing IP, LLC)
- Website
- https://zingermansbakehouse.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1992
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Zingerman's Bakehouse is an artisanal bakery founded in 1992 in Ann Arbor, MI, producing artisan breads, pastries, cookies, and custom cakes via a flagship retail shop, a wholesale delivery network serving 110+ Southeastern Michigan partners, a Cake Studio for custom celebration cakes, and BAKE! teaching classes, operating as a core business within the Zingerman's Community of Businesses.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Zingerman’s Bakehouse industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Artisan Bakery
- NAICS
- Retail Bakeries (311811), Bread and Bakery Product Manufacturing (31181), Commercial Bakeries (311812)
- SIC
- Bakery Products (2050), Cookies & Crackers (2052)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Retail Bakeries (Bread & Daily Bakery) (THAFAFAA)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Artisanal & Craft Bakeries (CRAHAGAA), Wholesale / Commercial Bakeries (B2B Supply) (THAFAFAF), Cafe-Bakeries (Bakery + Coffee/Foodservice) (THAFAFAG), Bread & Artisan Baking (EDAOAKAC)
Keywords
Where Zingerman’s Bakehouse is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Ann Arbor
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Zingerman’s Bakehouse business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Hardware or Manufacturing
- Cost components
- Personnel, Supply Chain, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales
Revenue model
- Retail Bakery Sales: Walk-in retail sales of fresh baked bread, pastries, cakes, sandwiches, soups, and salads at the Ann Arbor Bakehouse location open daily 7am-7pm.
- Wholesale B2B: Wholesale delivery of fresh baked goods to restaurants, cafes, and retailers across Southeastern Michigan. $160 minimum per order with minimum 5 orders weekly. Baked to order daily.
- Custom Cake Studio: Custom-designed cakes for weddings, birthdays, showers, and special occasions. Prices start at $150, 25% deposit required. Delivery available up to 2 hours away (starting at $35 for Ann Arbor).
- BAKE! Classes: Hands-on baking and cooking classes taught at the onsite teaching bakery, available both in-person and virtually for home bakers and cooks.
- Cookbooks and Products: Sale of Zingerman's Bakehouse cookbooks and specialty items including flours, bake-at-home products, and pantry items for customers to make at home.
- Gift Cards: Electronic and physical gift cards sold for gifting purposes, emailed or texted to recipients.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Transaction based/ take rate | Pay-as-you-go | Wholesale minimum order requirement |
| One time/ perpetual license | Multi-year contract | Custom cake starting price |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Cake delivery charges |
Go-to-market motion5 records
Distribution channels6 records
Marketing channels6 records
Zingerman’s Bakehouse product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Zingerman's Bakehouse is a wholesale and retail artisan bakery that produces artisan breads, pastries, cookies, cakes, pies, bagels, and lunch items using traditional time-honored methods and freshly milled regional grains processed on its own stone mills. The bakery also operates a Cake Studio for custom-designed celebration cakes, a BAKE! teaching bakery offering hands-on baking and cooking classes, and a wholesale delivery program serving businesses across Southeastern Michigan.
Product overview
Zingerman's Bakehouse is an artisanal bakery operating since 1992 with a full-service retail shop, Cake Studio for custom-designed cakes, and BAKE! teaching bakery. The company offers artisan breads (Rustic Italian, Sourdough, Rye varieties, Challah), pastries, ready-made and custom cakes, pies, desserts, bagels, pretzels, sandwiches, soups, and salads. Their products use traditional recipes, time-honored processes, hand-making techniques, and locally sourced ingredients, with many recipes featuring freshly milled regional grains processed on their own stone mills. Additional offerings include BAKE! hands-on baking classes (in-person and virtual), a wholesale delivery program for businesses ($160 minimum order), bake-at-home frozen products, organic flours, pantry items, and cookbooks. The company also provides custom cake design services through their Cake Studio for weddings and special occasions.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Cake Studio: Custom-designed cakes for weddings, birthdays, showers, and special occasions, along with Hungarian and American style cakes
- BAKE!
- Bakehouse Classics
Products and services
- Artisan Breads (Bakehouse Classics) Artisan breads including Rustic Italian, Sourdough, Jewish Rye, Challah, and specialty breads made with traditional recipes, time-honored processes, and freshly milled regional grains from the company's own stone mills. Sold to retail walk-in customers, wholesale partners, and via custom orders.
- Pastries & Morning Baked Goods Croissants, muffins, scones, cinnamon rolls, Danish pastries, vanilla bean crullers, chocolate glazed doughnuts, sweet ricotta-filled doughnuts, and other specialty morning baked items available daily starting at 7am at the Ann Arbor retail shop.
- Cookies & Brownies Assorted cookies including rugelach, macaroons, ginger jump-up cookies, and Townie Brownies plus seasonal varieties available at the retail shop and through wholesale.
- Ready-Made Cakes Pre-made celebration cakes including Hummingbird Cake, Carrot Cake, Chocolate cakes, Hungarian tortes, and seasonal specialty cakes available in various sizes for retail purchase.
- Custom Designed Cakes (Cake Studio) One-of-a-kind custom cakes for weddings, birthdays, showers, and special occasions in American and Hungarian styles covered in buttercream and fondant with extensive flavor and filling options. Custom cake consultation by appointment with 25% deposit required; delivery available up to 2 hours away.
- Pies & Desserts Fruit pies (cherry, key lime, blueberry), cheesecakes, tarts, éclairs, Pavlova, and seasonal desserts including cherry pie, key lime pie, and various specialty desserts sold at the Bakehouse.
- Bagels, Pretzels & Rolls Fresh-baked bagels including Zing 1610 Traditional, Everything, Sesame, Garlic, Amazin' Raisin, and Sea Salt varieties; Bavarian Pretzel Twists dipped in lye with pretzel salt; and various specialty rolls.
- Lunch Items Sandwiches (Genoa Salami, Maggie's Tuna Salad, Trusty Turkey, Frank's No Spring Chicken), grilled cheese, soups (Hungarian, Sri Lankan, Moroccan, Indian Rétes), salads, and breakfast items served at the Bakehouse from 7am-3pm.
- BAKE! Baking Classes Hands-on baking and cooking classes at the onsite teaching bakery (BAKE!) covering bread baking, pastry making, and cooking techniques. Available in-person and virtually to home bakers and cooks.
- Wholesale Program Fresh baked bread, pastries, and cakes delivered to restaurants, cafes, hotels, country clubs, and specialty food retailers across Southeastern Michigan. Minimum $160 per order with at least 5 orders weekly; baked to order and delivered fresh 7 days a week.
- Bake-at-Home Products Frozen items for home preparation including Cinnamon Rolls, Pizza Dough, Pie Crusts, Indian Rétes, Potato Bacon Rétes, Mushroom Turnovers, and Cornish-Style Pasties sold via mail order.
- Flours & Pantry Items Organic flours including Hard Red Spring Whole Wheat, Rye, Soft White Whole Wheat, and Spelt milled on the company's own stone mills, plus pantry items such as Ruby's Cubes (bread croutons) and Cream of the Crop Organic Wheat Porridge.
- Cookbooks & Cookbooklets Zingerman's Bakehouse Cookbook and Celebrate Every Day cookbook plus topic-specific cookbooklets covering Breezy Breakfasts, Fancy Schmancy Holiday Cookies, and Cup or Bowl soups.
- Gift Cards Electronic gift cards emailed or texted to recipients, plus physical gift cards available for pickup at the Bakeshop.
Companies that use Zingerman’s Bakehouse
Customer profileNamed customers6 records
Segments4 records
Ideal customer profiles4 records
Zingerman’s Bakehouse technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration1 record
Feature2 records
Zingerman’s Bakehouse partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
One partnership is on record.
- Zingerman's Community of BusinessescoreZingerman's Bakehouse is part of the Zingerman's Community of Businesses, a collection of over 10 mainly food-related businesses all based in and around Ann Arbor, MI. Includes Zingerman's Delicatessen, Zingerman's Coffee Company, Zingerman's Creamery, Zingerman's Roadhouse, Zingerman's Cornman Farms, Zingerman's Catering & Events, Zingerman's Greyline, Zingerman's Mail Order, ZingTrain, and others. They share common mission, vision, and guiding principles.
Scale indicators3 records
Recent moves7 records
Expansion highlights4 records
Zingerman’s Bakehouse competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- Panera Bread: National bakery-cafe chain serving breads, pastries, sandwiches, and soups; comparable on the cafe-bakery hybrid format and soup/sandwich retail offering, though at vastly larger scale and standardized format.
- Whole Foods Market Bakery: In-store supermarket bakery offering artisan breads, pastries, and custom cakes across hundreds of locations; comparable on retail bakery offerings and custom cakes, though as part of a broader grocery operation.
Direct peers
- King Arthur Baking Company: Employee-owned baking brand producing flours, baking mixes, baked goods, and operating a baking school/classes; directly comparable to Zingerman's on bakery education (BAKE!), retail flour/pantry products, and consumer packaged baking goods.
- La Brea Bakery: Artisan bread bakery producing traditional sourdough, rustic Italian loaves, and pastries for retail and foodservice; directly comparable to Zingerman's on artisan bread production, wholesale to restaurants, and retail storefront model.
- Tartine Bakery: San Francisco-based artisan bakery producing breads, pastries, and cakes using traditional methods including long fermentation; comparable to Zingerman's on craft positioning, retail storefront, and custom cake offerings.
- Boudin Bakery: Heritage artisan bakery founded in 1849 producing sourdough breads and pastries across retail storefronts and wholesale; comparable on artisan methods, retail/wholesale GTM, and 30+ year brand positioning.
- Levain Bakery: NYC-founded artisan bakery known for cookies, pastries, and breads with neighborhood retail storefronts; comparable on artisan positioning, retail-first GTM, and specialty baked goods focus.
- Sullivan Street Bakery: NYC artisan bakery specializing in rustic Italian breads, panini, and pastries with retail and wholesale distribution; comparable on artisan Italian bread production and retail/wholesale hybrid model.
Emerging players
- Stone & Skillet: Regional artisan English muffin and bread bakery producing traditional stone-baked goods for retail and wholesale; comparable on artisan methods, regional wholesale distribution, and small-batch craft production.
- Cake Bar by Andrea Smetona: Custom celebration cake studio operating by appointment with bespoke design services; comparable on Cake Studio custom-cake model with consultation-based orders, deposit requirements, and special occasion focus.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Zingerman’s Bakehouse social profiles
Digital presenceZingerman’s Bakehouse financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Zingerman’s Bakehouse leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles2 records
Zingerman’s Bakehouse funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Zingerman’s Bakehouse M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Zingerman’s Bakehouse
What does Zingerman’s Bakehouse do?
Zingerman's Bakehouse is a wholesale and retail artisan bakery that produces artisan breads, pastries, cookies, cakes, pies, bagels, and lunch items using traditional time-honored methods and freshly milled regional grains processed on its own stone mills. The bakery also operates a Cake Studio for custom-designed celebration cakes, a BAKE! teaching bakery offering hands-on baking and cooking classes, and a wholesale delivery program serving businesses across Southeastern Michigan.
Is Zingerman’s Bakehouse a public or private company?
Zingerman’s Bakehouse is a private company. It is classified as management employee owned and is currently operating.
When was Zingerman’s Bakehouse founded?
Zingerman’s Bakehouse was founded in 1992. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Zingerman’s Bakehouse based?
Zingerman’s Bakehouse is headquartered in Ann Arbor, United States, in the North America region.
How does Zingerman’s Bakehouse make money?
Six revenue lines are on record. Retail Bakery Sales are the primary driver. The others are wholesale B2B, custom Cake Studio, BAKE! Classes, cookbooks and Products and gift Cards.
Who are Zingerman’s Bakehouse's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are Panera Bread and Whole Foods Market Bakery. Direct peers are King Arthur Baking Company, La Brea Bakery, Tartine Bakery, Boudin Bakery, Levain Bakery and Sullivan Street Bakery. Emerging players are Stone & Skillet and Cake Bar by Andrea Smetona.
Does Zingerman’s Bakehouse have an API?
No public API is recorded for Zingerman’s Bakehouse.
What industry is Zingerman’s Bakehouse in?
Zingerman’s Bakehouse's product category is Artisan Bakery. Its primary akta.pro industry code is THAFAFAA, Retail Bakeries (Bread & Daily Bakery), with a secondary code of CRAHAGAA, Artisanal & Craft Bakeries. Its NAICS code is 311811 and its SIC code is 2050.