Breaking news – Sprout Artisan Bakery is opening a new production facility and retail store in Albion
Later this year, one of Brisbane’s best bakeries will unveil its striking new headquarters in the heart of Albion. Sprout Artisan Bakery will open a brand-new industrial-inspired production facility at Craft’d Grounds, giving northside locals a new spot to secure a box of Sprout’s covetable pastries and artisanal loaves. Here’s what we know …
When it comes to growth, Sprout Artisan Bakery founders Lutz Richter and Rebecca Foley have always operated under the mantra of ‘slow and steady’. Since starting the business in 2014, the couple has nurtured Sprout from a small-scale upstart into one of Brisbane’s most-beloved purveyors of baked goods, but the process played out over a series of calculated steps.
Sprout was born in the kitchen of Food Connect in Salisbury before taking its first steps as a market-based outfit in Rocklea. After building a cult following, Sprout eventually snagged a small space on James Street for a physical pop-up shop. The runaway success of this bricks-and-mortar iteration snowballed into Rebecca and Lutz securing a permanent site further along on James Street in 2021, which still operates today. By this stage, Sprout had become a pastry powerhouse and the establishment of a nearby production kitchen allowed the couple to cater to the rising demand without compromising quality.
In a few months’ time, Sprout Artisan Bakery will evolve once more. The team is building a brand-new home at Craft’d Grounds in Albion, with work underway to transform a street-facing portion of the hub (previously home to Seven Miles Coffee Roasters) into a cutting-edge production facility and retail space.
“We’re taking it up a notch,” says Rebecca.
When Craft’d Grounds founder James Rennell heard Rebecca and Lutz were looking for a new base of operations, he got in touch.
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“He came to us and said, ‘I would love to see Sprout here. Would you consider it?’” says Rebecca. “He just had a lot of belief in our business.”
Aligned both in terms of vision and passion, the union seemed like a logical fit. And, as it happened, the Sprout team had been eyeing off a northside move (the team has recently launched a new stall at the Nundah markets).
“A lot of customers have asked us to come north and open a shop,” says Rebecca. “It’s something that they’ve wanted, but we just didn’t know how to make it work.”
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Rebecca and Lutz have engaged Clui Design and Lowry Group to help fashion Sprout Albion’s headquarters, which will boast a retail counter and a sizable production space. The design scheme will look to give Sprout’s legion of fans more of a connection to the baking process, offering a number of vantage points from which to see the team in action.
“It’s going to give a little bit of a sneak peek into the processes of back of house,” explains Rebecca. “You’ll be able to see the ovens from the street and there will also be a viewing window from the retail platform. The lamination will be viewable, as will all the actual bread baking itself.”
As for the aesthetic, expect an interior scheme that meshes well with Craft’d Grounds’ industrial look. “I think it will be clean, organised and minimal, but it will have an approachable, simple aesthetic,” says Rebecca.
When it comes to the evolution of Sprout’s product range over the years, Rebecca and Lutz have opted to stick close to the classics – its buttery croissants, sweet and savoury danishes, creamy egg-custard tarts, cinnamon buns and sourdough loaves (made using a 72-hour process) are firmly etched into Brisbane’s baked goods hall of fame. Though its core range will take pride of place on the counter and shelves of the retail space, there’s a chance Sprout may introduce new items once the Albion kitchen is humming.
“We’ve kept it pretty simple and consistent for a long time,” says Rebecca. “But as we grow the team and we start to have more of a workable space where we can get more creative ideas going, then we’ll come up with some cool things.”
Though the largest move undertaken by the Sprout team thus far, the bakery’s next phase still aligns closely with Rebecca and Lutz’s long-held approach to sustainable growth. Rebecca assures us that Sprout’s reputation for favouring quality above all else will continue.
“You can’t really scale artisan baked goods unless you have the right systems and it’s done intentionally,” says Rebecca. “I think this will allow us to grow.”
For those wondering, Sprout’s James Street location isn’t going anywhere – the bakery will continue to trade as normal.
Sprout Artisan Bakery in Albion is targeting a late-June or early July opening date. We’ll keep you updated as the launch approaches.