‘You will be missed.’ This longtime Charlotte bakery will close for good next month.
After 26 years of business, Plaza Midwood staple Nova’s Bakery has announced that it will close on Dec. 13.
Co-owner Sladjana Novakovic confirmed in an email that the business would be permanently closing with no plans to do a similar concept.
“We are closing on December 13th our business after 26 years, it has been very difficult to maintain what we do since many of our customers has been out of business temporarily or permanently,” Novakovic emailed CharlotteFive on Wednesday.
Laurel Market, which uses Nova’s bread for many of its deli sandwiches, posted on its Instagram feed about the closing of the bakery. “Thank you to the Novakovic family for working with us since 1996,” the deli posted on Tuesday night. “You will be missed.”
Owners Vlado and Sladjana Novakovic, who are originally from Serbia, settled in Charlotte and opened their first location just off South Boulevard on Iverson Way in October 1996. The popularity of the bakery’s fresh European-style breads baked daily led to growth and a move to its current home base at 1511 Central Ave.
At one time, Nova’s Bakery had four locations: South End, Rock Hill, SC, Mint Hill and Plaza Midwood. The South End location closed in 2019, followed by its locations in Mint Hill and Rock Hill. Nova’s has also regularly sold its breads and pastries at the Charlotte Regional Farmers Market.
A fixture at the corner of Central and Pecan avenues, Nova’s Bakery served as a welcome to Plaza Midwood’s main thoroughfare. It was a meeting spot for friends to grab a coffee before perusing the neighborhood shops, or for colleagues to talk shop over freshly baked bread.
Wes Turner, president of the Plaza Midwood Neighborhood Association, said his first meeting as president of the neighborhood group was at the bakery. “We discussed many things that day, but change coming to Midwood was the main topic. Kind of fitting how that is where that conversation happened,” he told CharlotteFive on Wednesday.
“I’m sure there are plenty of Midwood residents that have good memories of many conversations over the good coffee at Nova’s, and I have a feeling that they’ll be greatly missed.”
Known for pastries such as the almond creme cake and the princess doughnut, as well as its bread selections including a variety of pullmans and the ever-popular paisanos, Nova’s will be open every day until the doors close for the last time on Dec. 13.
This story was originally published November 18, 2020 at 1:34 PM.
