It’s a family affair at Beldotti Bakeries, LLC, a growing regional supplier of breads and pastries based in Stamford and in Port Chester, N.Y.
Father James F. Beldotti Jr. is owner and managing partner. Son Christopher is in charge of the wholesale division and sales, while son Michael runs production. The wives are also involved – the elder Beldotti’s wife, Lorraine, manages the retail bakery and Michael’s wife Lisa does bookkeeping and other financial work.
“They live next door,” Beldotti said of his son and wife, Lisa. “We meet every morning to go over the financial position of the company before we go to the bakery — we start our business at about 7, 7:30 every morning.”
It all started in 1985, when Michael Beldotti asked his father, James F. Beldotti, Jr., to purchase the small Stamford bakery where Michael was working. Just a few years after that purchase, and with the help of a loan from the Small Business Administration, James Beldotti purchased another bakery — Cerbone Bakery in Stamford, a full-line bakery with an established following.
Renamed Beldotti Bakeries in 1995, the business has grown over the years, as more family members have come on board to help in day-to-day operations.
Today, Beldotti also owns an established commercial bakery in Port Chester, which produces all the company’s breads. With a payroll of more than 30 people and the family still at the helm, Beldotti Bakeries, LLC has been named the Jeffrey Butland Family Owned Business of the Year by the Connecticut office of the Small Business Administration.
The Stamford retail location offers pastries, cakes, bread and other items. The acquisition of the Port Chester facility has allowed the company to expand its production to artisan breads. Products are sold and delivered to food service companies, hotels, delicatessens, caterers, country clubs and other businesses from New York City to Hartford.
Beldotti said his business is a 24-hour, seven-day a week operation.
“From the very beginning, we developed a reputation for good service,” he said. “We never let our customers down if they are in jam. We will do another bake to get them their product — we make sure they get the right product and a fresh product.”
Beldotti Bakeries never sells anything that hasn’t been baked that day, he said.
Customer Bob Blakeslee, the chef at Wee Burn Country Club in Darien, said he has been working with Beldotti Bakeries for at least a dozen years.
“They’re very service-oriented – they’re always working to keep you happy,” he said. “I’ve used other people, but there’s no one better to work with.”
Blakeslee said Beldotti is always working on making improvements to its artisan breads, a product Wee Burn uses often.
“They customize (their products for you) however they can,” Blakeslee said, after the bakery created a special cheddar-sundried tomato biscuit in response to his request for a cheese biscuit. “They work hard to make us look good.”
While the business has continued to expand over the years, the Beldottis continue to pound the pavement, meeting weekly to discuss a sales strategy. Beldotti said the company is out making cold calls and sales presentations on a regular basis.
Christopher Beldotti said it’s a competitive business, so they have to stay on top of their game.
“There have been situations where we’ve visited the same restaurant or country club for five years in a row and the next time you go back, the chef says, ‘things went bad with my other bakery and I had your card,’” he said.
The Jeffrey Butland Family Owned Business of the Year Award is given to family owned businesses that have passed from one generation to the next and in which the owner operates the business, among other criteria. The owner must also serve as a majority owner and operator or bear principal responsibility for operating a small business with at least a 15-year track record.
Beldotti Bakeries was nominated for the award by its bank, First County Bank, which has worked with the business throughout its growth, including more than eight loans totaling over $1.7 million.