Your Subtitle text
History
OLD EUROPE – OLD LESSONS FOR A NEW WORLD
It began with a family passion.
Melinda Vetro – born and raised in Annavolgy, Hungary, the middle child of three sisters – started baking when she was 3 years old, rolling dough with her grandmother. Annavolgy, which means “Anne's Valley,” is a small, picturesque mountain mining town where everyone lives simply. The men work in the coal mines and the women bake. That’s how Melinda spent her time, at her grandmother’s side, every afternoon. After high school, Melinda decided to become a pastry chef so that she could share her talent and passion for baking (and her grandmother's recipes) with the world.
Getting to America...
In 1989, while working three jobs in Hungary, Melinda met her husband, Zoltan (known as “Z”). Having left Hungary years before as a political refugee, Zoltan returned home when the borders reopened, eager for his native food and of course, its lifestyle. He met Melinda and with her returned to the United States in 1991, settling down in Minnesota. During the six months it took to complete Melinda's immigration paperwork, she learned English – and, of course, baked for her husband. They decided to share their love of Hungarian European pastries with America by starting their own business. Knowing they wanted to plant roots in their new country, but wanting to live in a place with mountains and four seasons, they decided to look elsewhere.
Two cross-country trips later, while in Tennessee, they watched “The Last of the Mohicans.” Mesmerized by the scenery and realizing they were very close to where the movie had been filmed, they took a side trip to the Carolinas. Melinda remembers what happened next: “We drove in on I-26 and, immediately upon seeing the mountains and looking down on Asheville, Zoltan said, `This is our city.’ ”
The American Dream ... Starting a Business
Soon after they moved to Asheville in 1991, while working at a local bakery, Melinda learned of a business for sale in Woodfin. Newly remodeled with all the kitchen appliances she and Z would need, they paid $10,000 for the shop and started planning. But they needed more funds, so they started approaching banks – Z with his charm and Melinda with her pastries. Soon, they received their first $5,000 loan and began baking.
In 1994, they moved their retail shop to downtown Asheville on Battery Park, where there were more tourists. Although that space did not have a kitchen, Melinda would bake her pastries fresh at 6 a.m. each morning in Woodfin and deliver to Asheville. It was hard work, and at first they didn't think they would make it. They even considered moving, but then Melinda became pregnant with their son, Bence, so they decided to give it a couple more years. Economic times were tough and the winter even tougher, but this was a woman on a (delicious) mission; three days after giving birth to Bence, she was back to baking. Z soon obtained a permit to have outdoor seating and, slowly, business started to improve until, finally, their dream was coming true – and they decided to stay.
A Recipe for Disaster
Then, unexpectedly, they faced a nightmare: Melinda was diagnosed with breast cancer and then just as they were getting successful they were told they had to leave their Battery Park location. The good news is that Melinda survived the disease, but their business – which they re-opened in a new location that they purchased on Lexington Avenue, complete with a restaurant and nightclub in addition to the pastry business – didn’t make it. They had taken on too much debt just when the recession began and, in 2009, they had to shut it down.
Back to Basics... Stronger and Better
Small businesses begin with a passion, and it's the passion that keeps them going, regardless of the odds. Today, determined to stay in Asheville, Melinda has reopened Old Europe – but this time going back to basics: great coffee and excellent homemade European pastries. She doesn't regret the last few years; she survived the toughest part – breast cancer – as well as an amicable divorce. Melinda started baking in a small town in Hungary. Now, independent and assertive, she has become a role model of a female entrepreneur. Melinda credits Z with having the dream to start a business in America and being unafraid to learn about business. She has learned everything she knows about America and business from him. Today she is eager to move forward doing what she loves most, the craft she learned at her grandmother’s side so many years ago. As Melinda often states, "All I want to do is bake and make people happy." And honestly, all we want her to do is bake so we can be happy when we taste those lovely pastries you can't get anywhere else.
Pictured: Melinda (far right with her son in the front)
It began with a family passion.
Melinda Vetro – born and raised in Annavolgy, Hungary, the middle child of three sisters – started baking when she was 3 years old, rolling dough with her grandmother. Annavolgy, which means “Anne's Valley,” is a small, picturesque mountain mining town where everyone lives simply. The men work in the coal mines and the women bake. That’s how Melinda spent her time, at her grandmother’s side, every afternoon. After high school, Melinda decided to become a pastry chef so that she could share her talent and passion for baking (and her grandmother's recipes) with the world.
Getting to America...
In 1989, while working three jobs in Hungary, Melinda met her husband, Zoltan (known as “Z”). Having left Hungary years before as a political refugee, Zoltan returned home when the borders reopened, eager for his native food and of course, its lifestyle. He met Melinda and with her returned to the United States in 1991, settling down in Minnesota. During the six months it took to complete Melinda's immigration paperwork, she learned English – and, of course, baked for her husband. They decided to share their love of Hungarian European pastries with America by starting their own business. Knowing they wanted to plant roots in their new country, but wanting to live in a place with mountains and four seasons, they decided to look elsewhere.
Two cross-country trips later, while in Tennessee, they watched “The Last of the Mohicans.” Mesmerized by the scenery and realizing they were very close to where the movie had been filmed, they took a side trip to the Carolinas. Melinda remembers what happened next: “We drove in on I-26 and, immediately upon seeing the mountains and looking down on Asheville, Zoltan said, `This is our city.’ ”
The American Dream ... Starting a Business
Soon after they moved to Asheville in 1991, while working at a local bakery, Melinda learned of a business for sale in Woodfin. Newly remodeled with all the kitchen appliances she and Z would need, they paid $10,000 for the shop and started planning. But they needed more funds, so they started approaching banks – Z with his charm and Melinda with her pastries. Soon, they received their first $5,000 loan and began baking.
In 1994, they moved their retail shop to downtown Asheville on Battery Park, where there were more tourists. Although that space did not have a kitchen, Melinda would bake her pastries fresh at 6 a.m. each morning in Woodfin and deliver to Asheville. It was hard work, and at first they didn't think they would make it. They even considered moving, but then Melinda became pregnant with their son, Bence, so they decided to give it a couple more years. Economic times were tough and the winter even tougher, but this was a woman on a (delicious) mission; three days after giving birth to Bence, she was back to baking. Z soon obtained a permit to have outdoor seating and, slowly, business started to improve until, finally, their dream was coming true – and they decided to stay.
A Recipe for Disaster
Then, unexpectedly, they faced a nightmare: Melinda was diagnosed with breast cancer and then just as they were getting successful they were told they had to leave their Battery Park location. The good news is that Melinda survived the disease, but their business – which they re-opened in a new location that they purchased on Lexington Avenue, complete with a restaurant and nightclub in addition to the pastry business – didn’t make it. They had taken on too much debt just when the recession began and, in 2009, they had to shut it down.
Back to Basics... Stronger and Better
Small businesses begin with a passion, and it's the passion that keeps them going, regardless of the odds. Today, determined to stay in Asheville, Melinda has reopened Old Europe – but this time going back to basics: great coffee and excellent homemade European pastries. She doesn't regret the last few years; she survived the toughest part – breast cancer – as well as an amicable divorce. Melinda started baking in a small town in Hungary. Now, independent and assertive, she has become a role model of a female entrepreneur. Melinda credits Z with having the dream to start a business in America and being unafraid to learn about business. She has learned everything she knows about America and business from him. Today she is eager to move forward doing what she loves most, the craft she learned at her grandmother’s side so many years ago. As Melinda often states, "All I want to do is bake and make people happy." And honestly, all we want her to do is bake so we can be happy when we taste those lovely pastries you can't get anywhere else.
Pictured: Melinda (far right with her son in the front)