Page 7 - BusinessWest August 7, 2023

“It’s a good to-go business, so it worked out, and we were able to withstand the pandemic.”
from several neighboring communities willing to drive for a Snickerdoodle bagel. Or a Cheesy Garlic. Or a Hot & Spicy.
“We helped get people downtown,” he said, add- ing that, while some pick up a bagel and breakfast sandwich to go, many tend to stay a while and even get some work done.
“It became a meeting place and a co-working space,” he said. “We have several writers who come in and get some writing done during the day.”
Toast of the Towns
The success of the Easthampton shop eventually led to talk of expansion, Zawacki said, adding that, almost from the beginning, the goal was to create multiple locations.
The company first expanded into neighboring Northampton, opening in the Northampton Athletic Club in 2014. This was a small location, and as Zawacki put it, “it took a number of years for people to find us.”
But eventually, the location, like the one in East- hampton, developed a strong following, and this past April, the company moved into a new and much larg- er space in the Stop & Shop plaza on King Street.
After Brian and Shannon Greenwood relocated to
Maine several years ago, the Zawackis bought them
out and later continued their course of expansion. As
they did so, they recognized the need for a larger bakery space and found one in the former Sears franchise location on Route 9, space that also became home to a small bagel shop as well.
That location opened in 2020, just a few weeks before the pan- demic hit, Zawacki went on, adding that the next several months were, obviously, a time of challenge for the company. But the busi- ness model and product lines enabled Tandem to effectively ride out the storm.
“After the initial six months of chaos and everybody not knowing
Tandem Bagel has taken its diverse menu of options to several area communities, with more locations under consideration.
what’s going on, we were able to get our menu going,” he explained. “We already had online ordering, so we were able to stay above
water and keep our busi- ness going based on our menu. It was simple, it
Tandem
Continued on page 18
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