Short on space, Simply Sisters prepares for move to downtown Vandergrift

Simply Sisters Bakery is on the move to a bigger and more convenient location in downtown Vandergrift.

Five months ago, sisters Karen Johnston and Paula Cunningham started serving doughnuts, cookies, soups and more out of an old beauty shop on Emerson Street.

As soon as Oct 1., the sisters will leave this tiny space for one in downtown Vandergrift that’s about three times larger. The existing location will stay open in the meantime.

“(We) just need more space,” Johnston said. “We outgrew this place faster than we thought we would have.”

Their future home at 175 Columbia Ave. will have three rooms: a showcase area, a workspace and a kitchen. The sisters said this will allow them to offer catering and more grab-and-go meals.

Right now, there is barely enough space for a single display case in the front room, and the back is just as packed with ingredients and appliances.

“We won’t be bumping elbows anymore,” Johnston said.

Parking — or a lack thereof — is another motivator for their move.

Emerson Street is largely residential, limiting the number of on-street spots available to customers, while Columbia Avenue is in the business district, where parking turns over more frequently.

Bobbie Morda, owner of Bobbie’s Jewelers at 173 Columbia Ave., recently called the sisters to recruit them as neighbors. The space next door last served as rental housing.

“I never met them, but I sort of watched them through Facebook, and they seemed like hardworking business owners,” Morda said.

She said she even had customers come in asking for directions to Simply Sisters.

Two doors down from 175 Columbia Ave., Kelly Adamik spoke favorably of Simply Sisters while cutting hair Friday afternoon. Adamik owns Kelly’s Salon and Gathering Room, a joint salon-gift shop.

“It’s good to see young blood coming in,” Adamik said.

Another salon, Studio 56, opened Tuesday near the intersection of Columbia and Washington avenues after extensive restoration to the historic Anchor Building by New Kensington-based Olde Towne Overhaul. And Lydia Leighs, yet another beauty shop on Columbia Avenue, recently marked its three-year anniversary.

Robert Buchanan, president of the Vandergrift Business Association, attributed the growth in this part of town to a few factors. One, there is a shortage of vacant storefronts in good condition on Grant Avenue. At the same time, businesses can reap the benefits of downtown events, such as Gathering on Grant, by moving onto nearby Columbia Avenue.

“(Businesses) want to be part of all the events we’re doing,” Buchanan said. “It’s much harder to direct somebody up to a business that’s several blocks away.”

Cunningham is excited to get closer to the action, though she will miss the nook where the bakery got its start.

“I’ll be sad moving from here,” she said. “We just don’t have any room.”