After almost 170 years in business, the ovens at Love’s Bakery have produced their final loaves

HONOLULU, Hawaii (HawaiiNewsNow) - The bakery that many Hawaii families relied on for generations closed its doors and bid farewell to its loyal customers and employees Wednesday.

Love’s Bakery, a local institution, had been supplying families and businesses with fresh bread and other treats for almost 170 years.

But as the pandemic forced hotels and restaurants to drastically cut back their purchases, Love’s Bakery saw sales drop more than 20% last year. Because of this and other factors, officials at the company made the tough decision to close Love’s Bakery at the end of March.

To honor the bakery’s impact on Hawaii, many customers drove by the factory in Kalihi to honk their car horns and wave shakas as a way to say thank you.

“It’s sad and happy at the same time,” said Ricky Peralta, a Love’s Bakery employee. “I’m glad that people have been blowing their horns to support, and I want to thank everyone for supporting Love’s Bakery.”

Employees said the factory is already in pieces, but customers were still able to get their last fix of Love’s bread at the company’s thrift store.

Although many customers will now have to find a new brand to buy their bread, more than 230 employees statewide also lost their jobs due to the closure.

“Nobody like see this happen. Nobody like lose their jobs. Everybody’s kind of sad, you know,” said Frank Hunter, who has worked at Love’s Bakery for many years.

Despite the bakery’s closure, Love’s won’t completely disappear.

A bakery in Oregon bought the license to produce bread and other baked goods using the Love’s name.

Although many said it will never be the same, the beloved bakery will definitely not be forgotten.

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