BREAKING the mould

Kate Green talks to Wellington business owners who, despite the pressures of lockdowns, have not just survived but thrived and expanded.

Some have called Mia and Tim Tracey crazy. Opening a hospitality business right after lockdown was risky, but to do it twice has been a triumph.

Co-owners of Pickle & Pie (2 Lombard St), the couple opened their new shop, Dough Bakery, two doors down (at 6 Lombard St) last month.

This is the second Dough Bakery store. The first is doing well in Upper Hutt (836 Fergusson Drive).

The idea grew out of the first lockdown when Tim, like plenty of other New Zealanders, began making sourdough.

The first store was a hit and remained busy throughout the levels. “And because we’re crazy, we’re doing it again,” Mia says.

Mia, who is in the third trimester of pregnancy, says it was slightly harder this time, amid more uncertainty over the Delta variant, and shortages of construction materials and labour.

“There have been a few sleepless nights when we wonder why we’re bothering,” she says.

The central city was still quiet, with fewer pedestrians wandering past. But they were keen to add another string to their bow, in a move to diversify their assets and make sure all their eggs weren’t in the same basket.

The bakery was designed to complement their existing brand. The goods baked at Dough are also available at Pickle & Pie, as is the bread for their sandwiches.

The couple’s pie cart, another offshoot that grew out of the first lockdown, was usually parked on Fergusson Drive in Silverstream. It had been busier than their Wellington store during alert level 3. “We were so grateful for every purchase,” she says.

And nearby, another new venture is taking shape. Donnie Taco is a collaboration between Shepherd Elliott, the man behind Leeds Street Bakery and Shepherd Restaurant, and Sean Golding of Golding’s Free Dive.

Theirs is a story of a seized opportunity. Mexican restaurant Viva Mexico closed down six months ago, and Elliott was quick to recruit its head chef, Luis Gerardo Guajardo Sandoval.

For the past six months, Sandoval has been head baker at Elliott’s Leeds Street Bakery, but there was a feeling his talent was being under-utilised.

“Him not doing Mexican food is a tragedy,” Elliott says.

Elliott is part of a collective of neighbouring hospitality businesses, comprising Golding’s Free Dive, Shepherd, Leeds Street Bakery, Puffin, and The Intrepid Hotel.

“Sean Golding and I were talking about the fact that Golding’s needed food on a Monday and Tuesday, as Pizza Pomodoro had closed down on those two nights. Luis was really keen. It was a great opportunity for everyone involved,” Elliott says.

The plan was eventually to move the business into a refurbished food truck, which would be parked on the corner outside Golding’s but, for the time being, tacos were delivered through a window between the Leeds Street Bakery kitchen and Golding’s Free Dive.

“We are in a fortunate situation,” Elliott says. “It hasn’t been as hard as it has for others. We aren’t so reliant on office workers, and we have a very loyal clientele.”

Expanding amid Covid-19 restrictions and the uncertainty of alert level shifts was no walk in the park. “But we feel this is as good a time as any,” Elliott says.