SAUGUS—Eduardo Panozzo, a franchisee of Nothing Bundt Cakes, attended the Board of Selectmen meeting to receive a Common Victualler license to open a store at 745 Broadway.
Chairman Debra Panetta was absent for this part of the meeting, so Vice Chairman Jeff Cicolini led the hearing.
Panozzo was very enthusiastic about the opening of a Saugus location, even bringing cakes with him to share with the Selectmen.
“I’m very excited about Saugus. I just realized how much traffic is on Route 1. I was stuck, and it’s really slow, which is really good for marketing,” he said.
He continued to say that he really liked the area, and he and his wife were actively looking for homes in the town.
“People have been so welcoming … The brand is phenomenal … I don’t think there’s much competition to the style of cakes that we do,” Panozzo said.
He said the brand has existed since 1997, and none of the 648 stores opened across the nation have ever been closed.
“The way that we bake and the way that we do our frosting, everything is handmade. It’s from scratch. We don’t use anything coming out of a can,” he said.
He also said that he’s already seen excitement for the store opening in Saugus.
“Saugus in general being close to Revere and other towns, which we’re not going to be opening in those areas, this will be the main one, I think it’s going to attract a lot of people. They’re driving from Revere, from different towns around here … all the way to Peabody. A lot of people that already know we’ve been looking in this area have been coming to the bakery every month saying, ‘Hey, when is Saugus going to be coming alive?’”
Selectman Michael Serino mentioned that all of the recommendations from police, fire, and inspectional services have come back positive.
“You have a floor plan and parking plan. That mall has been pretty well established … The cakes look delicious. Strawberries and cream, red velvet, carrot cake, snickerdoodle, all of my favorites,” Serino said.
Though this is only Panozzo’s second store he said he is opening 10 stores in Boston through a $10 million development.
“My dad’s retired already. I used to be in the wine business for a long time and I own restaurants right now, but all in Texas, none of them here, but I’ve moved here for good … I have four years to develop these 10 stores,” he said.
The store’s hours of operation will be Monday through Saturday from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. There will be no seating in the store.
Selectman Anthony Cogliano said he gave his granddaughters the Bundt cupcakes for Thanksgiving and they cleaned off all of the frosting very quickly.
Panozzo is looking forward to starting the Saugus location up, with a possible start date in February 2025. He is also hoping to contribute to the town as much as he can, and hopes the Selectmen reach out with ideas on how he can do so.
The vote to grant the location with a Common Victualler license was a unanimous yes, minus the absent Chairman Panetta.
