The Sugar Fairy Bakes Opening the Second Location in Malta in March
MALTA — The Sugar Fairy Bakes, a bakery from scratch in Mechanicville, will be opening a second location in Ellsworth Commons in Malta in March in Malta. And for owner Stacie Blair, it’s been a while coming.
Blair founded The Sugar Fairy Bakes in 2019, initially running the business from her home. Blair had planned for the company’s initial showroom to be located in Malta, but the plans were put on the table after the COVID-19 pandemic hit in early 2020.
Soon after, Blair found an opportunity to establish her bakery in Mechanicville. Now, she is expanding her horizons back to Malta.
“It’s been a great year,” Blair said of the bakery’s time in Mechanicville. “We live in Mechanicville, but I’m not utilizing my equipment to its fullest potential. All the equipment I got with the building is factory, and Mechanicville just can’t put up with the demand my equipment can handle.”
Sugar Fairy Bakes will be baking items at the Mechanicville location, and delivering them to be sold in the Malta showroom, Blair said. Their location in the Ellsworth Commons is just over 2,000 square feet.
And for the residents of Malta, Blair said that Sugar Fairy Bakes will offer “old fashioned, from scratch” baked goods to the community. Blair emphasized that “99.9%” of their food comes completely from scratch.
“Nothing comes out of a box or a can,” Blair said. “Most of my ingredients are locally sourced.”
Sugar Fairy Bakes receives eggs from a farm in Melrose, honey and maple syrup from a farm in Cobleskill, and meat from a farm in Schaghticoke, she said. Many of the company’s recipes have been passed down through Blair’s family members and her employees, with some dating back more than 100 years.
“We’re just the small, old-fashioned community bakery,” Blair said.
Sugar Fairy Bakes offers items such as cakes, brownies, cookies, pies, cinnamon buns, quiche, eclairs, cannolis, breakfast sandwiches, and more.
“We have our signature chocolate chip, and then we make a cookie of the week,” Blair said. “I make over 250 different cookies, so this is a good way to get each one out there. … Every Wednesday is scone day. Thursday is a sweet roll day, so instead of a cinnamon roll, you have a raspberry, or a strawberry, or a blueberry.”
Blair cited the growth of the Malta community as a reason for the expansion, and said that the Sugar Fairy Bakes will help fill a need in the area.
“Since the community of Malta is really growing, I am giving them something that they do not have easily accessible,” said Blair. “I’m putting in their hands freshly made cracked egg breakfast sandwiches and baked goods that they don’t have anywhere else.”
Blair also hopes that the opening of her second location will start a trend for the company. Blair said her plan is to franchise Sugar Fairy Bakes in the next 10 years.
“I have a 10-year plan. In 10 years, we will be franchised,” said Blair. “That’s the plan. We have Mechanicville, we have Malta. … But I never do it so big that I can’t do it from scratch, and I can’t do what makes me, me.”
But first comes the opening of the location in Malta, which offers something “real” to the local community, said Blair.
“When you’re cooking from scratch, you’re using real butter, you’re using real eggs, you’re using flour, you’re using sugar,” Blair said. “You’re putting all these ingredients together to produce the final product. You are not using cheap processed, chemically preserved alternatives to create it. In the end, not only do you have a healthier product, but you have a better tasting product. The quality speaks for itself.”