Finding the Perfect European-Style Gourmet Bakery...
It Is Closer Than You Think!

The Weekly Update, Fuqua School of Business,
Duke University, April 13, 2000

By John Mack, Class of 2000

Exiting Academy Road and driving down the 15-501 towards Durham, you might just miss it. A small black and yellow sign by the side of the road is the only indication that it is there, and the unmistakable cake symbol gives you only a hint of what you will discover if you pay a visit. Curiosity finally gets to you...or maybe you're just hungry? You slow down, put on your turn signal, and pull into the parking lot. Prepare yourself, since you are about to enter a world of European gourmet baking tradition, nestled right here in the heart of North Carolina.

Durham is actually a very international city, not least due to the presence of world class academic, medical and technology facilities like Duke University and Research Triangle Park. The multiple cultures that come here to work also have to find time to eat, and a pair of entrepreneurs from Germany has found a way to combine both activities under a single roof at the Guglhupf Bakery and Pâtisserie.

When co-founder Claudia Cooper took her first job with the German subsidiary of Hewlett-Packard in 1996, she had the unmistakable feeling that she wouldn't like it. Working in a cubicle on a daily basis, being confined to the slow lane of the German corporate ladder, and above all, working for someone else, wasn't her idea of a fulfilling long-term career. After six weeks, she quit. She immediately took another job in her native Munich, this time, working for an established local bakery that had grown over the years into a large chain operation. Claudia worked in the bakery's central production facility, which supplied the individual city bakery outlets with their fresh dough and many finished products. All the while, she took careful note of the way the business was managed, and carefully developed her plan to take the German bakery concept on the road...to the United States.

The path to the US consumer market wouldn't prove easy. Gourmet quality baked goods, the kind that are produced by traditional methods with truly fresh ingredients, are not a part of the average American's diet. Our culture tends to be much more focused on convenience and speed, which translates into preservatives that guarantee long shelf lives, and a general lack of variety and fresh flavor. In a world of Pop-Tarts and doughnuts, would consumers pause long enough to try something new, fresher, and healthier? She thought so.

Together with Hartmut Jahn, a mechanical engineer with experience at US company Parametric Technologies, Claudia set out for an entrepreneurial foray into the US market for European style baked goods. After considering a host of cities, including Washington, New York, Charleston, Savannah, Austin, and Boulder, Claudia and Hartmut finally settled on Durham. A seven month search effort finally led to their discovery of an available building in May of 1998. Braving city bureaucracy and a tedious federal policy requiring a completed business plan in exchange for an "investor visa", they finally gained approval to charter as a local business. In November 1998, the bakery known as Guglhupf opened its doors for the first time, and soon had a line extending out the door and a 45-minute waiting time for its launch customers.

Guglhupf ("goo-gull-hoopf") is admittedly an uncommon name, remarks Claudia with a smile. Hearkening back to its historical roots as an Alsatian or Austrian coffee cake, the name is said to refer to the shape of a Turkish hat. Most Americans find it difficult to pronounce, and indeed, the word is so unique that the new company had little difficulty registering the Internet domain name www.guglhupf.com. Visitors to the site are treated to a full history of bread products, a listing of ingredients, and the results of scientific studies which identify artisan/natural breads as an important part of a healthy diet. This is quite at odds with many Americans' viewpoint that bread immediately equates to "fat". Claudia points out that "bread is literally the only food that people can eat and survive on", and that the people who are most concerned about fat from bread are often the very same people who consume large quantities of unhealthy processed foods.

Guglhupf's product offering is far from the world of processed foods that one typically encounters at the local supermarket. With over 17 varieties of bread, croissants with delicious fillings (ham, cheese, spinach), and German specialties such as authentic Oktoberfest-style pretzels, apple cake, and chocolate-dipped cookies, the bakery has established itself as a local source for decidedly non-local tastes.

As the store continues to attract customers, it is continually expanding its product line to include coffee and additional pastry items. Claudia and Hartmut hope to eventually open a sit-down café at their present location in Durham. Eventually, the baking team plans to introduce jazz music at select times during the week, turning their locations into local focal points for people wanting a little musical culture as they enjoy the European culinary culture.

Whether you're just passing through Durham as a student for a couple of years, or here on a more permanent basis, you'll certainly be hearing the name "Guglhupf" more often in the months to come!