Campbell’s Bakery: Setting the Standard for Bakeries in the Magnolia State
ARTICLE BY BRANDI PERRY
L
ouis Campbell returned to Jackson in 1945 after being a cook and baker in the Army. Immediately after returning, he got a job at Jitney Jungle (now County Market) in Fondren, but he felt as though he would be happier working for
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himself. So, in 1962, he and his wife Jessie opened his bakery in Fondren, where it still sits today. Mr. Campbell instantly became famous for his teacakes and cookies, both baked fresh every day. Visitors can still taste both of these products today and, you guessed it, made following the same recipe. Campbell’s Bakery soon established itself as one of the premier bakeries in the state, making from scratch cakes, cookies and their famous teacakes. For 20 years, he made cakes for weddings and other events statewide, brought smiles to countless faces old and young, but in 1982 he decided to sell it. Franklin Aldridge picked the bakery up right where the Campbell’s left off, and he was able to continue the bakery’s success in a Fondren neighborhood struggling to survive. The bakery went through an extremely difficult time between 2002 and 2011 when they welcomed and parted with five owners in just a matter of 18 months. It looked like the news would come any day that the cherished bakery would be closing its doors. With the longevity of the bakery in jeopardy, Mitchell and Natalie Moore purchased Campbell’s Bakery in January of 2011. The Moores understood the struggles the bakery had encountered, but as a pastry chef, Mitchell was determined to put Campbell’s back on the main stage of bakeries in the state and return it to its former glory. The first thing Mitchell did was bring back Louis Campbell’s original recipe teacakes and make sure his clients knew that everything was made from scratch. There is definitely a reason Campbell’s has been around for so long, and Moore has a theory to the longevity. “I think Mr. Campbell gave the bakery the firmest foundation possible in his 20 years of original ownership. I can’t tell you the number of people who will see me in a Campbell’s shirt and say, ‘Y’all did my wedding cake in 1971,’
