TRAVERSE CITY — Growing a restaurant chain in the throes of a recession hasn't been as easy as pie for Mike and Denise Busley.
But the owners of Grand Traverse Pie Co. said there's a special satisfaction that will accompany the opening of their 19th store Thursday in downtown Traverse City. The 65-seat, 2,800-square-foot cafe and bakery in the 101 North Park Street building not only represents the chain's continued growth, but also a chance for their family to be part of their recipe for success.
"This is a new team, a new space, a new part of town," Mike Busley said as he busied himself Monday with last-minute details at the downtown location. Workers scurried to install a sign and stocked the cooler and freezers with pies and supplies from the company's other shop on West Front Street.
Denise Busley said the latest shop offered a chance for her family to reconnect in restaurant planning and development. Daughter Kellee and son Bobby were children when the couple opened their first store in Traverse City in 1996, she said. Now in their 20s, the siblings were integral partners in helping design the new space and selecting charity causes it will support.
"It keeps us together as a family," said Denise Busley, a staunch child advocate whose volunteer work with young people earned her both state and local recognition. "The kids and us did this one."
The Busleys also hope the store will become a template for Grand Traverse Pie Co.'s continued growth. Mike Busley said the shop is smaller than its other stores and could become a model for second outlets in cities that already have one operation. The new shop features four large bakery ovens, but some of its pies, cookies and other baked goods will be produced at the 525 W. Front St. location and delivered downtown.
"Space is costly," he said. "You've got to be more efficient."
Downtown officials are excited about the expansion. Rob Bacigalupi, deputy director of the city's Downtown Development Authority, said the cafe adds a key retail component to the mixed-use office and residential building at 101 North Park Street. The anticipated pedestrian traffic also will create a "bridge" to the growing retail sector on the east side of downtown.
"We're glad it's retail; it really helps the ambience of the street," Bacigalupi said. "It will help the pedestrian traffic flow up and down Front Street."
