
When Hayley McGinley learned she had a sensitivity to gluten in 2015, it gave rise to an idea. A self-identified lover of carbs, she wondered if a local option to purchase handmade, artisanal bread existed for those with her condition. A quick Google search revealed an unoccupied niche in the market. “I started small, really humble,” says McGinley, who launched Native Bread in 2016 as a side hustle. Armed with library books, she workshopped recipes using trial and error in her own kitchen and then shared them with her social network. “I actually don’t have any background in baking other than having my grandmother—my dad’s mom—who was an incredible baker,” McGinley says. “I grew up eating her treats and watching her be a wizard in the kitchen.”
The response to her gluten-free creations was overwhelmingly positive, she says. As the operation grew, she began baking in the ClusterTruck kitchen downtown and later in the former Duos kitchen near the Children’s Museum. In 2018, Native Bread became McGinley’s full-time gig, and the following year she signed a lease on her own production facility and storefront in Castleton. Now, customers can walk in on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays to purchase popular sourdough and honey oat breads, along with other treats.
In addition to being gluten-free, all of Native Bread’s scratch-made, small-batch products are free of milk, eggs, wheat, soy, and nuts. The lineup of goods also includes scones, galettes, cookies, and pints of take-and-bake cookie dough.
Food delivery service Market Wagon and other local businesses carry Native Bread products, including Cafe Patachou, Garden Table, and Blue Mind Coffee Roasting. McGinley debuted Native Bread for nationwide shipping last year. 9546 Allisonville Rd., Ste. 106, 317-537-2707, nativebread.com