Kansas City bakery closing after more than a decade: ‘Too many continuous setbacks’
A Midtown Kansas City bakery is closing after more than a decade of serving customers.
Yum, A Boutique Bakery is shutting down permanently, the business announced on its website and social media Friday.
The shop at 104 E. 43rd St. will be open for “select hours” over the next month as it winds down operations. In February, it will sell off its equipment and decor.
Yum offers a rotating menu that includes lemon cream cheese cake, coconut cream pie, gooey butter cake bars, flourless chocolate torte and more.
“I am asking one last time for your support,” the statement from owner An Zebley reads. “Your continued support throughout January will help ease the stress of transition.”
Zebley went on to explain that “too many continuous setbacks” caused the bakery to close. She named the COVID-19 pandemic, health difficulties and three years of road closures as obstacles. The business is located near the Kansas City Streetcar expansion along Main Street.
Businesses along the new streetcar route to UMKC reported financial difficulties during construction. Midwest Cyclery told KMBC this fall that it had seen a 50% drop in profits.
Despite this, Zebley said the store’s location was a “really great space ... especially when the streetcar expansion is complete in 2025.”
In September, Yum was broken into during a string of burglaries and vandalism that affected several other businesses.
Before she had her midtown storefront, Zebley sold goodies in Kansas City’s West Bottoms neighborhood during First Fridays. The bakery opened at 1614 W. 39th St. in 2015. Years later, it moved to its current location.
“It was all of your beautiful faces that kept me going this long,” Zebley said in her statement. “It’s what I’ll miss the most.”