Grand Central Bakery delays plans for independent trust ownership amid unstable economy
Grand Central Bakery will delay its plan to transfer ownership of the company to a purpose-driven trust, citing economic hurdles.
The Pacific Northwest bakery chain announced in May that it would longer be privately owned by family and employees. He said the company’s goal over the next year is to “get the business back to a place of sustainable profitability and low staff turnover.”
The transition would make Grand Central one of just a handful of U.S. companies to be owned by a perpetual purpose trust. Company officials had previously said the new ownership structure would ensure that the future business decisions won’t be purely profit-driven and that the company upholds its principles.
“It’s a delay, but the plans to transition to trust ownership are very much intact,” she said.
Grand Central Bakery will delay its plan to transfer ownership of the company to a purpose-driven trust, citing economic hurdles.
The Pacific Northwest bakery chain announced in May that it would longer be privately owned by family and employees. Instead, Grand Central Bakery planned to transfer controlling shares to a trust created to preserve the company’s independence and protect its mission in perpetuity.
The bakery expected to complete the ownership transition during the summer. Now, the timeline is uncertain.
The company blamed the economic challenges facing all kinds of businesses — namely disruptions in its supply chain and difficulty hiring and retaining workers.
On Friday, a financial adviser for the company said Grand Central is pausing the transition to focus on those issues.
“This has been a historically tough year for the company, mostly due to macroeconomic factors outside of their control,” said Peter Koehler, managing director of Forcefield Capital, an alternative investment bank firm focused on mission-driven companies .Koehler said Grand Central had recently increased staff wages and invested in new equipment . He said the company’s goal over the next year is to “get the business back to a place of sustainable profitability and low staff turnover .”The transition would make Grand Central one of just a handful of U.S. companies to be owned by a perpetual purpose trust. The ownership structure is only recognized in a few states, Oregon one of them. Company officials had previously said the new ownership structure would ensure that the future business decisions won’t be purely profit-driven and that the company upholds its principles.
