Food and Drink

South End bakery to close storefront after hitting ‘end of our rope,’ owner says

Wheatberry Bakeshop will bid adieu to its South End storefront next month.

Owner Haley Woodard on Monday shared the “difficult decision” to close the bakery’s storefront, known for slinging seasonal pastries, cakes and breads. Its last day of service will be Saturday, May 9.

“I know this might come as a little bit of a shock,” Woodard wrote in a farewell message posted on Instagram. “And while there are a lot of factors that have contributed it’s quite simple...we haven’t been able to find a way for this little business to make any money.”

A smiling young woman, wearing a light-colored baseball cap, a white shirt, and a gray apron, stands in front of a red brick wall. She is holding a two-layer, white-frosted cake on a gold cake board. The cake is decorated with a ring of white frosting on top and is sprinkled with what appear to be tiny, colorful sprinkles. She is looking directly at the camera with a happy expression.
Haley Woodard, owner of Wheatberry Bakeshop. Courtesy of Wheatberry Bakeshop
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The European-inspired bakery café opened the doors on its storefront in the Shops at The Winnifred in 2025 but has operated as a pop-up in Charlotte for several years. A one-stop shop for seasonal baked goods, Wheatberry quickly became a neighborhood favorite and regularly partnered with other Charlotte chefs.

Last summer, Substrate wine bar hosted the bakery for a pop-up event, CharlotteFive previously reported. ESO Artisanal Pasta, an Italian eatery at Optimist Hall, had also used Wheatberry for its fresh focaccia for a short time.

The bakery had hoped to move into a larger space that could accommodate both a kitchen and customer-facing retail space. On Monday, Woodard said the business was hitting “the end of our rope” and pointed to recent financial losses that nixed her dreams of expanding.

An overhead shot shows a white paper coffee cup next to a cardboard box filled with four assorted pastries on a mint green table. Inside the box, there is a savory egg-topped danish, a flaky almond croissant, a glazed scone, and a golden-brown turnover. A single triangular slice of cake topped with white frosting and edible flower petals sits on a white napkin in the foreground.
Wheatberry Bakeshop, known for its seasonal pastries, is closing its storefront in Charlotte’s South End neighborhood in May. RTG Emily Lyonswood
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“We are sad to be closing our little bakery,” she told CharlotteFive in a statement. “We have loved serving the South End neighborhood and will miss the community we built there.”

Woodard thanked her team and the local community for its support over the years, and assured fans this isn’t goodbye forever.

When asked about future plans, she told CharlotteFive: “We don’t know yet what the future holds for Wheatberry, but we would love to keep serving Charlotte great pastries. Hopefully sooner rather than later!”

Wheatberry Bakeshop is open Tuesday-Saturday from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Two men sit at a small mint green bistro table on the sidewalk in front of a modern brick building featuring yellow accents. The storefront is labeled “Wheatberry Bakeshop” above a black door numbered 105, with large windows showing the interior seating area. A leafless tree and several yellow lounge chairs line the walkway, creating a calm, urban atmosphere.
Wheatberry Bakery, a European-inspired bakery café, opened the doors on its storefront in the Shops at The Winnifred in South End in 2025. RTG Emily Lyonswood
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Wheatberry Bakeshop

Location: 1425 Winnifred St #105, Charlotte, NC 28203

Cuisine: Pastries, cakes and breads

Menu

Instagram: @wheatberrybakeshop.clt

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This story was originally published April 21, 2026 at 12:21 PM.

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Tanasia Kenney
Sun Herald
Tanasia is a service journalism reporter at the Charlotte Observer | CharlotteFive, working remotely from Atlanta, Georgia. She covers restaurant openings/closings in Charlotte and statewide explainers for the NC Service Journalism team. She’s been with McClatchy since 2020.
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