Jackson mainstay, Campbell's Bakery, now under new ownership
A beloved small bakery with a 60-year tradition in Jackson’s Fondren neighborhood is now under new ownership.
Damien Cavicchi, executive chef at the Country Club of Jackson, and Mary Sanders Ferriss Cavicchi, owner of the interior design and branding firm Ferriss & Company, are the new owners of Campbell’s Bakery located at 3013 North State St.
The husband-and-wife duo took over operations Thursday following a three-week transition period.
Recognized in March as one of the South’s top 20 bakeries by Southern Living magazine, Campbell’s is known throughout the area for its tea cakes, petit fours, cupcakes, custom cakes, brownies, pies, cheesecakes and many other items.
Mitchell Moore, who operated the business for more than a decade, announced in May his intention to sell and relocate to Baton Rouge where his wife Natalie accepted a new job.
“Mitchell had been a client of mine for a while so when he announced the bakery was available Damien and I decided it was the right thing,” said Mary Sanders Cavicchi. “As those who love Jackson and its people this responsibility is more than just a job. It’s a legacy,” she said.
Plans are for the bakery to continue its normal hours 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday with expanded hours expected soon. In January 2023, the bakery will close temporarily for interior renovations.
“We are going to renovate the kitchen in order to expand what we are able to offer,” Damien Cavicchi said.
But the traditionally popular items, with some recipes dating back to 1962 when the business was first opened by Louis Campbell, will also remain.
“We want to continue on with the tradition,” he said.
Damien began working in restaurants in Paducah, Kentucky, when he was still in high school and later attended culinary school in Rhode Island. His extensive career has included working as an executive chef at the historic Biltmore Estate in Asheville, North Carolina, and as owner of two restaurants in that area. He came to Jackson in 2012 where he has close family ties.
“My journey has been all over the country, but my work has always been up close to baking,” he said.
Mary Sanders’ work through her firm Ferris & Company can be found at local restaurants including Tuk Tuk Boom, Sal and Mookie’s and Aplos, among others.
Campbell, who opened the store six decades ago, had previously served as a cook in the Army and later worked as a baker with the former Jitney Jungle grocery chain. In 1982 he sold the business to Franklin Aldridge who operated it until 2002. Over the next several years Campbell’s changed hands several times before being purchased by Moore in 2011.
During Moore’s tenure, the bakery also operated a location in Madison as well as a donut shop in Jackson’s Belhaven area. Those locations were later sold. During a May interview with the Clarion Ledger Moore called his involvement with the bakery “the best 11 years of my life.”
Brad Carr, a friend and associate of the Cavicchis, stopped by Thursday morning to wish the new owners well.
“What I love about Campbell’s is the neighborhood feel. It’s a quaint, wholesome place where families can come and hang out,” Carr said.
The business currently has four employees, including longtime baker Katlin Burke and decorator Yolanda Brown.
“We’re like family,” Burke said. “We just like coming in every day and doing what we love.”
Damien Cavacchi said he looks forward to meeting all of Moore’s regular customers as well as introducing new people to the bakery’s offerings.
“I love seeing familiar faces and we plan to keep all of the existing products as well as introduce some new things that you will only be able to get here,” he said.
This article originally appeared on Mississippi Clarion Ledger: Campbell's Bakery, a mainstay in Jackson, under new ownership
