The Little Cake Company, the Jonestown Road bakery known for its buttercream-covered layer cakes and cupcakes, will close its doors on Nov. 21, but owner Ellie Scalf isn't done baking yet. She's still taking orders for Thanksgiving desserts, with pickups set for the day before the holiday.
Scalf opened the bakery in 2022 at age 28 after leaving a corporate banking job, according to the Winston-Salem Journal. The shop sits at 420 Jonestown Road in Winston-Salem, though an earlier Journal report on the bakery's 2022 opening listed the address as 420-A Jonestown Road, next to Cha Da Thai in the New Town Shopping Center. Scalf decided to close instead of renewing her lease, a choice she explained in a Facebook post, the Journal reports.
“The economy has been tough lately,” Scalf said, according to the same report, adding that continuing to operate in the current economic climate wasn't financially comfortable for her. She called the decision to close difficult but said she's confident it's the right one, and added that she's honored customers made her bakery part of their celebrations and everyday routines.
One Last Round of Holiday Orders
Despite the looming closure, the bakery isn't slowing down before it shuts its doors. The Little Cake Company will accept preorders for Thanksgiving desserts, with pickups scheduled for Nov. 25 from noon to 5 p.m., according to the bakery's own website.
“We would love to be part of your Thanksgiving table one last time,” the bakery says on its site. The shop's online shop also notes a broader sentiment to its customer base: “thank you for the last five years!” — a nod to the run Scalf has had baking round and heart-shaped layer cakes, cupcakes and other buttercream-topped treats since opening.
Customers hoping to place custom orders before the bakery closes should plan ahead. The Little Cake Company recommends reaching out at least two weeks in advance for custom flavors or decor, and two to three months ahead for wedding cakes. Orders totaling more than $75 require a nonrefundable 50% deposit, per the bakery's ordering policy.
A Shared Opening Day, A Different Ending
The Little Cake Company's debut in 2022 was tied, at least by timing, to another Winston-Salem bakery. The shop opened about a week or so after Artesano Bakery opened across the street, according to the Journal's reporting. Where Scalf's bakery traces back just a handful of years, Artesano's roots run far deeper: the family says its baking tradition began more than 80 years ago in Tacámbaro, Michoacán, Mexico, according to Artesano Bakery. The family opened the first Mexican bakery in Winston-Salem in the early 2000s and opened its first bakery together in 2007, carrying on what it describes as a five-generation baking tradition.
The contrast underscores just how different two neighboring bakeries' timelines can look, even when their storefronts opened within days of each other. While Artesano's lineage spans generations and continents, the Little Cake Company's run in Winston-Salem will close out at under five years once its doors shut next month.
Part of a Wider Squeeze on Local Food Businesses
The Little Cake Company's closure lands amid a stretch of turbulence for Winston-Salem's food and beverage scene. Restaurants including Acadia Foods, Que Viva Latin Street Grill and Little Pep wine bar issued social media pleas for help amid low sales during winter weather earlier this year, according to a report from 88.5 WFDD. Starbucks also closed two Winston-Salem locations as part of a company-wide turnaround strategy, per a report from the Triad Business Journal.
Winston-Salem's only 100% vegan restaurant also announced plans to close, even as its Greensboro location stays open, the Journal reported separately. None of those closures are directly tied to the Little Cake Company's situation, but they paint a picture of a food scene where even established names are rethinking their futures.
For now, Scalf's focus is on finishing strong. With Thanksgiving pickups set and the shop's final day on the calendar for Nov. 21, the bakery is spending its last weeks doing what it has done since 2022 — turning out cakes and cupcakes for the tables of Winston-Salem.
