Lubeley’s Bakery and Deli celebrates its $5,000 bakery makeover grand prize. Pictured from left: Audra Mazzeo, General Mills; Sue Lubeley Suardi, Lubeley’s Bakery; Greg Labens, General Mills; Helen Lubeley, Lubeley’s Bakery; Chip Levers, General Mills; Helen Lubeley Murray, Carol Lubeley, and Bob Lubeley, Lubeley’s Bakery; and Randy McArthur, Retail Bakers of America/McArthur’s Bakery

General Mills, Minneapolis, selected Lubeley's Bakery and Deli in St. Louis as the second grand prize winner in the company's 2008 Merchandising Makeover: Pillsbury Bakery Edition contest, presented in collaboration with the Retail Bakers of America (RBA). As the winners, brother and sister co-owners Robert Lubeley and Helen Lubeley Murray received $5,000 to remodel the family's 70-year-old bakery. The bakery recently added the finishing touches and unveiled the newly renovated bakery at a special grand reopening event on January 31.

A team from General Mills and the RBA worked with Lubeley's to evaluate the bakery and develop a blueprint that would make the biggest impact with their given budget. They moved forward with a plan that provided a fresh look and allowed the bakery to better merchandise its products.

According to Sue Lubeley Suardi, the bakery's head cake designer who entered the bakery in the sweepstakes, General Mills and the RBA representatives were valuable in helping the bakery develop working plans for the makeover. “They even helped us out with refurbishing the tile floor and painting the walls,” Suardi said.

Lubeley's used the prize money to purchase new racks, display fixtures and case lighting to better showcase its baked products. The bakery received a fresh and vibrant paint scheme of steel blue and yellow and a new wood grain deli counter.

Lubeley's Bakery and Deli is the oldest family-owned bakery in the St. Louis area and is widely known for its German pastries, tortes, stolen, Danish and special occasion cakes. Every morning the bakery's original owner, 96-year-old Helen Lubeley, still greets customers.

Two grand prize winners received a store-front makeover for their bakery valued up to $5,000 each in the 2008 Merchandising Makeover. Johnson's Bakery in Duluth, Minn., received the first grand prize and unveiled its new look at an event in September.

General Mills and RBA now are accepting applications for the 2009 Merchandising Makeover: Pillsbury Bakery Edition contest. Entries must be postmarked by May 1. For more information on how to enter and for merchandising tips from RBA President Lynn Schurman, visit www.modern-baking.com.