Beloved bakery on Hilton Head’s south end closing its doors at end of year. Here’s why
After seven years baking out of a brick-and-mortar store, The Purple Cow’s owner Lisa Bernstein will close her shop at the end of the year.
The Purple Cow brand has been a Hilton Head staple for around 14 years, Bernstein said, but has only operated out of its own space for about half of that time. Formerly located in Port Royal Plaza, Bernstein closed that location in 2020 shortly after signing a new lease to take over an old Juice and Java location on the South End.
The price for supplies needed to keep the business operating at its current scale has increased dramatically since then, Bernstein told The Island Packet. There weren’t enough opportunities to reduce costs elsewhere without compromising the quality of her goods.
“All of my ingredients and supplies have gone up at least double, some triple and some quadruple, and the management company has increased my (common area maintenance) fees for the third time since I moved into this space,” Bernstein said. “I went over everything for a week to see if I could cut costs anywhere, but I can’t cut the quality of my product. I am a mercantile and not a restaurant.”
Bernstein said she’s not able to transition to a restaurant model because regulations require a restaurant to have at least two ADA-compliant restrooms, and her location has only one. The cost to install another restroom or renovate to comply with other ADA changes in the future wouldn’t make sense financially, she said, since the space is rented month-to-month.
“I went over my budget and figured out what I could spend, and I asked the landlord for help,” Bernstein said. “They chose to take my 30 days notice instead. I am so devastated; you have no idea. I have put my everything into this space. So, sadly, with no help, I am forced to close.”
The Purple Cow will remain open until Dec. 31 from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. — or until goods are sold out — Tuesday through Saturday.
Bernstein said she intends to sell everything in the shop, including furniture and kitchen supplies, to anyone interested.
The Purple Cow isn’t the only business being impacted by the closure. Bernstein said 10 local artisans who sell their wares at the bakery will be affected too, and she encouraged residents to buy the artisans’ products as Christmas gifts to help support their businesses.
What’s next?
While the shop is shutting down, Bernstein doesn’t intend to stop baking. it’s a hobby she’s cultivated since her time at college in the 1980s and her full-time work since 2008.
Before renting the bakery’s current space, Bernstein started her business working out of the back of Fat Baby’s Pizza & Subs. She said she’ll transition back to that model after closing shop.
“I will go back to doing what I was doing before I became a brick and mortar. I will bake anything and everything with a few days notice. I will continue to sell my cheesecakes to local restaurants around town, and I will do pop-up shops,” Bernstein said. “This time I will also be doing mini menus. I will put out a menu on Monday. People will have (until) Wednesday afternoon to order it, and then they will pick it up on Friday.”
After the closure is final, Bernstein said she’ll take three weeks to “put (her) house in order“ before returning to baking. She hopes selling the remaining furniture and supplies from The Purple Cow will help her navigate the interim period before she settles into new work.
But visitors and locals who loved the bakery shouldn’t expect a new location in the near future, she said.
“I put every penny I had to move into this space, and I am losing my dream, so I have zero intention of looking for a new brick and mortar anytime soon,” Bernstein said. “I need to thank the community for their support. They have always had my back. I have so many amazing memories.
“It brings me such joy every morning when I unlock the door at 7 a.m., and it is going to break my heart when I have to lock it on Dec. 31.”
This story was originally published December 11, 2022 at 9:00 AM.
