Highland Bakery
Highland Bakery is a privately held Atlanta bakery-restaurant group founded by Stacey Eames, operating four locations serving fresh-made breakfast, brunch, and lunch, with catering services and a franchise program expanding the brand.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1984
- HeadquartersNorthbrook, United States
- Headcount501–1,000
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingServices
What Highland Bakery does
Highland Bakery is a privately held, founder-operated bakery-restaurant group headquartered at 655 Highland Avenue NE in Atlanta, Georgia. The business operates multiple physical locations across the Atlanta metro area, including the original Old Fourth Ward site, a Downtown location at 25 Park Place, a Georgia State University campus outlet, and the Press & Grind concept on North Highland Avenue. Each location offers dine-in seating, carry-out, and, at most sites, space rental for events. The company sells fresh-baked goods, pancakes, benedicts, sandwiches, and desserts prepared daily in-house, with menu coverage spanning breakfast, brunch, and lunch served all day. Founder Stacey Eames established the modern operation by building from coffee carts into a multi-location bakery with heritage tied to a 1930s-era predecessor that historically served figures including Alberta King and Martin Luther King Jr.
The company's revenue model rests on three streams: restaurant food sales from individual dine-in and carry-out transactions, catering and event services for corporate and private clients, and franchise/license fees from a publicly promoted franchise program. Distribution is omnichannel within the Atlanta footprint, combining on-premise dining, online ordering via ChowNow, third-party delivery through GrubHub, and a dedicated catering channel supported by the EZ Cater marketplace. Marketing is driven by earned media (AJC, Jezebel, Atlanta Magazine, Zagat, Creative Loafing), celebrity endorsements (Ashton Kutcher, Jennifer Nettles), and a franchise opportunity funnel.
Underlying technology is intentionally lightweight and outsourced: a Squarespace website, third-party ordering and delivery SaaS (ChowNow, GrubHub), and the EZ Cater platform for catering lead capture. The company reports no proprietary software, no mobile app, and no API platform. With 501-1,000 employees and self-description as a 'multimillion dollar bakery and kitchen,' Highland Bakery positions itself as a mature, regional, founder-led operator pursuing incremental expansion via franchising rather than venture-style growth.
Highland Bakery firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Highland Bakery
- Legal name
- Highland Bakery
- Website
- https://highlandbakery.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1984
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 501–1,000 employees
- Short description
- Highland Bakery is a privately held Atlanta bakery-restaurant group founded by Stacey Eames, operating four locations serving fresh-made breakfast, brunch, and lunch, with catering services and a franchise program expanding the brand.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Highland Bakery industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Bakery and Restaurant Services
- NAICS
- Retail Bakeries (311811), Full-Service Restaurants (722511), Baked Goods Retailers (445291)
- SIC
- Bakery Products (2050), Retail-Eating Places (5812)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Retail Bakeries (Bread & Daily Bakery) (THAFAFAA)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Cafe-Bakeries (Bakery + Coffee/Foodservice) (THAFAFAG)
Keywords
Where Highland Bakery is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Northbrook
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices4 records
Markets served
Highland Bakery business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Supply Chain, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D
Revenue model
- Restaurant Food Sales: One-time transaction revenue from breakfast, brunch, and lunch menu items sold at physical restaurant locations. Customers dine in or take out.
- Catering Services: Catering orders for events of all sizes. Customers email selections or call catering department. BGCMA orders supported with specific code.
- Franchise Fees: Revenue from franchise opportunities, selling franchise rights to new operators. Company states it has grown 'from a coffee stand to a multimillion dollar bakery and kitchen.'
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels4 records
Marketing channels4 records
Highland Bakery product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Highland Bakery operates bakery-restaurants serving breakfast, brunch, and lunch all day from multiple Atlanta locations. The core offering centers on made-from-scratch baked goods, pancakes, benedicts, sandwiches, and desserts prepared daily using freshly milled grains. The company supplements restaurant operations with full-service catering for events of all sizes and a franchise program for brand expansion.
Product overview
Highland Bakery is a bakery-restaurant with a platform-plus-services model. The core product is the Highland Bakery Restaurant, offering breakfast, brunch, and lunch all day with fresh-baked goods and house-made items. This is supplemented by Catering and Events services for private and corporate events, and the Highland Bakery Franchise program enabling brand expansion through licensed operators. The company has grown from a single Old Fourth Ward location to multiple Atlanta locations including Downtown, GSU campus, and Press & Grind.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Highland Bakery Restaurant Bakery and restaurant serving breakfast, brunch, and lunch all day across multiple Atlanta locations. Features fresh-baked goods, house-made breads, pancakes, benedicts, sandwiches, and desserts prepared from scratch daily using freshly milled grains, with dine-in seating and carry-out available.
- Catering and Events Full-service catering for corporate, private, and special events of all sizes, including daytime and evening space rental at Highland Bakery Downtown and Press & Grind locations. Customers place orders by emailing selections or calling the catering department, with BGCMA orders supported under specific codes.
- Franchise Opportunities Franchise program offering the Highland Bakery brand and operating playbook to new operators for opening additional locations, expanding on a concept that has grown from a single Old Fourth Ward coffee stand to a multimillion-dollar Atlanta bakery operation.
Companies that use Highland Bakery
Customer profileSegments2 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Highland Bakery technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration3 records
Highland Bakery partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Two partnerships are on record, tiered core.
- ChowNowcoreOnline ordering and delivery platform integration. Highland Bakery uses ChowNow for Old Fourth Ward location ordering, allowing customers to place orders digitally for pickup and delivery.
- GrubHubcoreThird-party food delivery platform. Highland Bakery offers GrubHub ordering at its Downtown location, expanding delivery reach to customers.
Scale indicators3 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights4 records
Highland Bakery competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- Waffle House: Atlanta-headquartered 24/7 diner chain with deep regional brand recognition. Comparable as an Atlanta-rooted, multi-location breakfast operator, though with a fundamentally different format and price point.
- Le Pain Quotidien: Bakery-cafe chain with strong organic, vegetarian-leaning menu and full-service dining. Comparable as a scaled bakery-cafe competitor overlapping with Highland Bakery's bakery + dine-in model.
- Panera Bread: National bakery-cafe leader with strong catering, digital ordering, and loyalty infrastructure. Comparable as a larger, more diversified incumbent operating in the same bakery-cafe category with omnichannel ordering at scale.
Direct peers
- Another Broken Egg Cafe: National breakfast/brunch franchise. Comparable as a franchised upscale breakfast/brunch concept pursuing multi-unit expansion, similar in daypart and menu style to Highland Bakery's franchise program.
- First Watch: National daytime cafe chain focused on breakfast, brunch, and lunch. Comparable in menu, daypart structure, dine-in format, and franchise-style growth ambition to Highland Bakery.
- The Flying Biscuit Cafe: Atlanta-born breakfast/brunch concept with multiple locations and franchise growth. Directly comparable as an Atlanta-rooted, daytime-focused cafe-bakery competing for the same morning and brunch guest.
- Corner Bakery Cafe: Bakery-cafe chain offering breakfast, lunch, and catering through company-owned and franchised units. Directly comparable as a multi-channel bakery-cafe with catering and franchising revenue streams.
- West Egg Cafe: Atlanta brunch restaurant serving breakfast and lunch all day with a Southern comfort food menu. Closely comparable menu, daypart, price point, and local customer base to Highland Bakery.
- Cafe Intermezzo: Atlanta-based European-style cafe and bakery with multiple locations serving breakfast, brunch, and pastries. Comparable as an Atlanta cafe-bakery competing for similar daytime traffic with scratch-made baked goods.
Regional players
- Rising Roll Gourmet: Atlanta-based sandwich and soup concept. Partially comparable as an Atlanta lunchtime competitor for crossover breakfast/lunch traffic, though differentiated by menu focus.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat2 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Highland Bakery social profiles
Digital presenceHighland Bakery financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Highland Bakery leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles1 record
Highland Bakery funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Highland Bakery 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 Highland Bakery
What does Highland Bakery do?
Highland Bakery operates bakery-restaurants serving breakfast, brunch, and lunch all day from multiple Atlanta locations. The core offering centers on made-from-scratch baked goods, pancakes, benedicts, sandwiches, and desserts prepared daily using freshly milled grains. The company supplements restaurant operations with full-service catering for events of all sizes and a franchise program for brand expansion.
Is Highland Bakery a public or private company?
Highland Bakery is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Highland Bakery founded?
Highland Bakery was founded in 1984. It employs 501 to 1,000 people.
Where is Highland Bakery based?
Highland Bakery is headquartered in Northbrook, United States, in the North America region.
How does Highland Bakery make money?
Three revenue lines are on record. Restaurant Food Sales are the primary driver. The others are catering Services and franchise Fees.
Who are Highland Bakery's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are Waffle House, Le Pain Quotidien and Panera Bread. Direct peers are Another Broken Egg Cafe, First Watch, The Flying Biscuit Cafe, Corner Bakery Cafe, West Egg Cafe and Cafe Intermezzo. Rising Roll Gourmet is listed as a regional player.
Does Highland Bakery have an API?
No public API is recorded for Highland Bakery.
What industry is Highland Bakery in?
Highland Bakery's product category is Bakery and Restaurant Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is THAFAFAA, Retail Bakeries (Bread & Daily Bakery), with a secondary code of THAFAFAG, Cafe-Bakeries (Bakery + Coffee/Foodservice). Its NAICS code is 311811 and its SIC code is 2050.