Bakery History
The unassuming two story store/flat that houses Positively 3rd St Bakery was constructed in 1913. The earliest tenant that we know of was a family grocery store, Bertulla's, that operated at least through the 1950s. We always appreciate hearing stories from people that grew up in the neighborhood.
The building housed a succession of bakeries from the 1970s through 1982, when several workers banded together to buy out their management and start a worker co-op. Cooperative enterprise is in NE Minnesota is nothing new, but the new bakery brought a tradition with it's roots in Scandanavia into the present.
The name "Positively 3rd St. Bakery" was an inventive conjunction of Dylan lore (predating "Bob Dylan Way" by a quarter-century!) and geography. The financing was largely DIY-that founding generation worked at minimal wages to cover start-up costs. The model was whole-grain baking at affordable prices-a business niche that the bakery is happy to inhabit to today.
Since 1982, the cooperative has grown to include about ten fully vested members, all of whom work at the bakery and participate in running the business-one member, one vote. Our model emphasizes economic and environmental sustainability, customer service, and having fun.
