DAYTON — A local bakery has served the Miami Valley for more than 100 years and now, it’s returning to its roots at a second location inside the Dayton Arcade.
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Smales Pretzel Bakery officially announced its new location on Thursday. Owner Emma Smales said on Friday that she’s been scouting the new location for over six months and is “excited to finally get to tell everyone” about it.
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It’s been a while, but the Smales family was selling pretzels in the Arcade a long time ago. They started way back in 1913.
“We found an ad from January 1914,” she said. “My great, great grandpa Rudy selling Dutch hard pretzels.”
Another news clipping inside their store shows Smales in the Arcade in 1969.
Smales said they got the name Smales Bakery when they moved to their Xenia Avenue location in 1926.
Customers who spoke to News Center 7 called it a staple in the area and now, Smales said she’s proud to be able to return to where it all started.
“It’s fun to think about, like what could Rudy have guessed that 120 years later that some of his descendants would be selling pretzels in the same place,” she said.
Smales said none of this would be possible without the support from her community.
“Any time we’ve needed support, they’ve shown up,” she said. “So we feel really lucky that we get to do this.”
As reported on News Center 7 at 11:00, the location inside the Arcade is still under construction, but Smales said the space is expected to be ready in May. She hopes then to be open in the fall.
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