Black Apron

What Black Apron does

Black Apron is a German specialty bakery operating under the legal entity NEKST GmbH & Co. KG, founded in 2015 in Lower Saxony and now serving four cities (Berlin, Hamburg, Hildesheim, and Hannover). The company produces and sells high-end cakes, breads, pastries, and confectioneries using traditional baking techniques paired with modern recipe development, and has built its identity around American-inspired household baking traditions executed with German precision. Its ingredient base is 100% organic, certified under DE-ÖKO-072, and the product range explicitly accommodates gluten-free and vegan dietary preferences.

The core technology is craft-based rather than digital: production relies on conventional bakery processes with a curated premium supplier ecosystem, including Original Beans for chocolate, WeideEi for pasture-raised eggs, and Kuhdammhof for regional farm inputs. Black Apron holds no patents, no proprietary software, no APIs or apps, and operates with no disclosed AI/ML capabilities. Distribution is exclusively retail, executed through physical bakery counters embedded inside sister-brand CODOS Coffee cafe locations across the four operating cities, supplemented by email-based bespoke orders for events and special occasions.

The business model is direct-to-consumer retail with two revenue streams: walk-in counter sales at CODOS Coffee cafe locations and custom/bespoke orders accepted via a dedicated email channel. There is no disclosed pricing schedule, no subscription or recurring contracts, and no enterprise or wholesale channel. The company is privately held with no disclosed external funding, parent entity, or institutional ownership, and is operated under the data-processing responsibility of Özlem Sögüt. Headcount sits in the 51–100 range, consistent with production and retail staffing across four city locations.

Name

Black Apron

Legal name

NEKST GmbH & Co. KG

Website

https://blackapron-bakery.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2015

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Black Apron is a privately held German organic bakery (NEKST GmbH & Co. KG) producing premium cakes, breads, and pastries sold through CODOS Coffee cafe locations and bespoke orders in Berlin, Hamburg, Hildesheim, and Hannover.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Artisan Organic Bakery

NAICS

Retail Bakeries (311811), Baked Goods Retailers (445291), Commercial Bakeries (311812)

SIC

Bakery Products (2050), Food And Kindred Products (2000)

akta.pro primary industry

Cafe-Bakeries (Bakery + Coffee/Foodservice) (THAFAFAG)

akta.pro secondary industries

Specialty Dietary Bakeries (Gluten-Free, Vegan, Allergen-Friendly) (THAFAFAI), Specialty Bakery Manufacturing (Gluten-Free, Artisan, Health-Focused) (AFAKAAAG), Artisan & Specialty Bakeries (Sourdough, Heritage Grains) (THAFAFAD)

Keywords

• Organic bakery
• Artisan baked goods
• Custom cakes
• Pastry retail
• BIO certified bakery

Headquarters

HQ city

Berlin

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices4 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Supply Chain, Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Retail Bakery Sales: Direct sales of baked goods and pastries at physical cafe locations. Customers purchase items in-person at CODOS Coffee locations in Hamburg, Hannover, Hildesheim, and Berlin.
2. Custom/Bespoke Orders: Custom bakery orders placed via email ([email protected]) for special occasions or bulk requirements.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Black Apron is a high-end organic bakery that produces and sells cakes, breads, pastries, and confectioneries made with 100% organic ingredients at physical retail counters within CODOS Coffee cafe locations in Berlin, Hamburg, Hildesheim, and Hannover. The bakery also accepts bespoke custom orders via email for special occasions and bulk requirements.

Product overview

Black Apron is a high-end bakery operating as a single unified product with multiple service components. The core offering is traditional bakery items (cakes, pastries) with organic ingredients, supplemented by custom order capabilities and partnered coffee service through sister brand CODOS Coffee. The company operates cafes in Berlin, Hamburg, Hildesheim, and Hannover.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Black Apron Bakery (Cakes, Breads, Pastries, Confectioneries) High-end organic bakery retail product line offering traditional cakes, breads, pastries, and confectioneries made with 100% organic ingredients (DE-ÖKO-072 certified), sold at physical counters inside CODOS Coffee cafes in Berlin, Hamburg, Hildesheim, and Hannover.
• Custom / Bespoke Bakery Orders Bespoke baked goods made to customer specifications for special occasions or bulk requirements, ordered via email correspondence.

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• CODOS CoffeecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSister coffee company operating cafe locations where Black Apron products are exclusively sold. CODOS Coffee has locations in Hamburg, Hannover, Hildesheim, and Berlin where Black Apron bakery items are served alongside coffee.
• BiocompanyminorOthersPartner retailer for Black Apron products, appearing on the partners page of the company website.
• Berlin Food WeekminorGTM or Marketing PartnerFood industry event partnership for marketing and brand visibility during Berlin Food Week festival.
• Original BeansminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPremium chocolate partner providing high-quality chocolate ingredients for Black Apron baked goods.
• WeideEiminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPasture-raised egg supplier (WeideEi = pasture eggs) providing free-range eggs from WeideEi.de for bakery production.
• KuhdammhofminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerRegional farm supplier from Kuhdammhof.de providing high-quality agricultural ingredients for bakery production.
• Creme GuidesminorGTM or Marketing PartnerMarketing/visibility partner appearing on the partners page of the company website.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/blackapron2015
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/black-apron

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Black Apron