ENTREPRENEUR WATCH

Roger Elkus in one of his Me & Ollie's. Michael McCord photo

Roger Elkus certainly didn't ask for it, but a near-death experience from severe pancreatitis that came out of nowhere has given him a remarkable new perspective on life and how a business can evolve to sustain itself in times of turmoil and stress. Elkus, the founder and owner of the Me & Ollie's bakery and cafes, told Ventures "it's a tribute to the team we have" that he could be gone for an extended period and the business didn't miss a beat.

Elkus started Me & Ollie's (named in honor of two sons) as a bakery on Islington Street in Portsmouth in 1998 and the company has grown to more than 70 employees and four stores. Elkus now has two Portsmouth locations (downtown and on Lafayette Road inside Philbrick's Fresh Market where the main bakery is located) and stores in Exeter and Hampton.

A trained baker who cut his teeth in the business in Cincinnati, Elkus said he's not surprised by the success of the company because of its unique blend of old-style bakery and low-key café that has grown to include pastries, granola and a wholesale business "" with foods made from organic red wheat grown in Montana. But he's been quite pleased the business has grown organically and that his employees have come to see working there as more than just a job but as part of a vibrant culture.

Ventures: What happened while you were away?

Roger Elkus: Looking back, it could have been devastating if it had happened at other times in the past. When we first started, I was a baker baking the bread and we wouldn't have survived because there was no one else to do what I was doing. What my partner Richard Wood and I discovered was the built-in system we had put in over the years worked when I was out. I was literally on my back in the hospital and couldn't do a thing but everyone performed great. It's a tribute to the team we have and a result of smart preparation, training, and the culture. Culture is an overused term but in this case it's true. We always tried to do the small things like having health and dental insurance and a simple 401k program which you don't often see in independent, small, cash-based businesses. When I was gone, we still had to work through some things but the store managers and the employees were great.

Ventures: How does the public see the Me & Ollie's culture?

RE: We have personality. We've created more of a hangout spot. We're in the right place because our community values authentic things. We don't want to be a Starbucks. There aren't bakeries like this, the corner bakery, any more. They see us working with hands and doing it the right way, trying to keep things as local "¦ we appreciate it and we believe our customers do. This is a difficult business. It seems we never sleep. We have our own bread factory and make between 5,000 to 8,000 loaves a week. The good thing about being small is that we are able to react quickly: when one of our customers or employees asks �why don't we do chocolate raspberry scones.' We can.

Ventures: How do you manage growth?

RE: We have no master plan and we don't have any specific locations we are looking at. It hasn't been by design but it's important to realize that if you don't grow, your employees can hit a (management) ceiling. Geography is obviously important and you have to take logistics into account because we have a central baking location. You don't want to grow for growth's sake. We moved downtown (Portsmouth) because Islington Street was not a good retail spot. We've been surprised we are doing as well as we are in Exeter and Hampton. You have to remember that these are small communities around here and we need to have 200 to 300 people walking through our doors in each store every day. You never know what's gonna happen.

Ventures: Where do you see the retail side of the business going?

RE: It's growing and about 15 percent of our business but we don't want it to grow much bigger. Someone told me long ago: 'don't let the wholesale tail wag the retail dog.'

Ventures: What's your role these days?

RE: As we grew and more of our managers began doing what I used to do (open the doors early and close them later), I reached a comfort level. I don't bake much anymore, except maybe making pies during our busy holiday season. I'm more of an overseer, dealing with the paperwork and the calls from developers who want us to move to the next best location. I try to stop by every store daily and hang out and talk to employees and customers. It's given me a new perspective and it's pretty encouraging. I love our business.