In certain cities of Florida including Tampa and St. Petersburg, La Segunda Central Bakery is the place to go for Cuban bread, Cuban sandwiches, and café con leche. It has three retail locations, a major wholesale business, and has been increasing online sales.
La Segunda exemplifies what happens when an independent business becomes known for a certain specialty; in this case, Cuban bread.
And it also embodies a family business that has managed to carry on and thrive from one generation to the next. It was started in Yuba City in 1915 by Juan More, and then taken over by his sons Ricardo, Raymond and Anthony and is now run by Anthony’s son Copeland More, from the fourth generation to run it.
Anthony is now 80 and still comes into work to stay actively involved in the business but Copeland More, aged 42, runs it.
It’s so productive that La Segunda now produces about 18,000 loaves of Cuban bread daily, and that’s a lot of dough.
Overall, about 50% of its business is wholesale and 50% retail. Its main wholesale customers are restaurants, ranging from independents to chains such as Beef O’Brady’s with over 150 locations and Larry’s Giant Subs with 90 locations, as well as mom ‘n pop delis and sandwich shops.
La Segunda has 130 employees totally, of which 30 are bakers; some of whom have been on the job for 50 years or so.
La Segunda’s reputation derives from its specialized Cuban bread. “It’s made by hand with a strict recipe and a process that can be arduous and takes a lot of manual work. It’s why people come back and are loyal to us,” More said.
More describes its Cuban bread as possessing “a soft interior and crunchy crust. It has a slightly sour flavor and we use a palmetto leaf to score the bread.”
Its café con leche is known for its strong, flavorful taste. More says that it uses beans made by Naviera, a Tampa-based coffee mill, and describes it as “an espresso shot with heated milk that is slightly steamed.”
Its clientele transcends Cubans and includes “anyone interested in Ybor City food, including Spanish, Italians and Germans,” More explained.
Its Cuban sandwich, made with marinated pork, ham, salami, pickles, Swiss cheese with special sauce on Cuban bread, is another mainstay. It is “best served pressed,” More noted.
At its retail locations, La Segunda taps multiple revenue streams. Most of its storefront business or about 65% stems from retail sales, but about 30% stems from online sales via its website and third-party sales, with about 5% for catering sales. Indeed it uses several delivery services, Uber Eats, Doordash and Grubhub.
But every location is different and at Ybor City, a neighborhood in Tampa known for its large Latino population, its wholesale bread accounts for 75% of sales
Its three locations have different seating capacities: Tampa accommodates 100 people, St. Petersburg 40 and Ybor City is take-out only with no seating.
Like all businesses, the pandemic disrupted its retail flow. More said, “Technology has been the key for us. The way customers ordered and picked up food changed drastically in 2020, and we had to adjust with them.” Hence, it stepped up online interactions and third-party delivery sales.
The pandemic forced La Segunda to “pivot” and amplify its technology, acknowledged More. “We had to make the tech experience smooth. We found one that was extremely easy and user friendly,” he said. He added that guests want to complete their order online in a minute or so, or if not, will go elsewhere.
The number one problem that More faces involves bread production. “Often our ovens are at capacity. We need more overs and a larger production floor to meet demand,” he stated.
To solve it, it has submitted plans to the city for rezoning in order to expand and add 15,000 square feet of production facility. Next hearing is in June 2022.
In the future, More envisions opening up new retail storefronts and has been looking at markets in proximity to Tampa such as Brandon and Wesley Chapel. “These are places we’re looking at, but it has to be the right spot,” he explained.
More is also looking into the future and preparing the next generation, and hoping his daughters, 10-year-old Lillian and 7-year-old Margaret, if they’re interested, can take over a finely-turned operation. “This is my legacy. I want the business to be smooth and stable for them. That’s my focus,” he said.