About Us

Hello, my name is Katie. My husband, Josh, and I are the owners of Stick Boy Bread Company in Fuquay-Varina, North Carolina. Let me share a little bit of our story with you!

In August 2001, Carson and Mindy Coatney opened the original Stick Boy Bread Company in Boone, North Carolina. While they were busy getting their shop up and running, I was studying English Literature and Women’s Studies at Appalachian State University (Let's Go Mountaineers!). By the Spring of 2002, the Coatney’s were looking for some part-time help and I was looking for a part-time job. I decided to apply for the position and (thankfully) Carson and Mindy decided to hire me. I don’t think any of us could have predicted the remarkable journey God had in store for us!

During my time as an employee at the Boone location, I watched the bakery outgrow its space, expand, and add new products like a full espresso bar, smoothie station, and dessert case full of delicious scratch baked pies and cakes. I also formed a very deep relationship with Carson and Mindy. They watched (and cheered me on) when I started dating Josh (an Industrial Drafting & Design major), got engaged to him, and (in August 2003) got married. It was a whirlwind!

In February 2004, Josh received a job offer from an engineering firm in Cary, NC so we packed up our little house in Boone and moved to Fuquay-Varina. We both knew that we were going to miss the bakery—we were absolutely addicted to the bread, coffee, and desserts, and knew that we would miss our friends.

Josh loved his drafting job but, in mid 2006, started to dream of something bigger. He started to dream of owning his own small business and decided that he wanted to do something “from scratch”. Josh and I began to talk about our likes and dislikes, and we started to think about the things we love. Josh has always enjoyed spending time in the kitchen, I love to work with people, and we both adore the Fuquay-Varina community. That’s when we realized that Fuquay-Varina needed a place for people to get together, grab something yummy to eat, and enjoy a bit of conversation. Fuquay-Varina NEEDED a bakery.

In January 2007, we sat down with Carson and Mindy and timidly asked them if they would help us open a bakery in Fuquay-Varina. To our surprise (and excitement) they agreed! We spent the following year training, baking test batches in our home oven, and transforming an old Western Auto into a bakery. In January 2008, we opened our doors. We’ve worked hard for the past decade (and plan to continue working hard) to offer the best handcrafted products and best customer service in the area. That’s a promise!

– Katie

For more information about the original Stick Boy Bread Co. in Boone, NC click here.