The Denver Bread Company and Victory Love + Cookies Have Closed

"While I am truly sorry for our loyal customers — we will miss them — it is time for a change," says Kristy Greenwood Bortz. And after taking off the month of August to "reflect and consider," she and her husband, Greg Bortz, decided to keep their dual businesses, the Denver Bread Company and Victory Love + Cookies, closed for good.

Greg founded the Denver Bread Company at 3200 Irving Street in December 1994 "with the simple idea that nurturing people with quality bread made with clean, pure ingredients, one at a time by hand, would be a great addition to the culinary community in Colorado," according to its website.

Kristy was the second employee he hired. "He always says I came with the building," she told Westword last year. The two soon began dating, and eventually got married.
In 2006, Kristy was diagnosed with breast cancer. She took two years off to heal, and during that time, she realized that she didn't want to go back to her old routine. Instead, she decided to focus on her passion for cookies, and she launched Victory Love + Cookies in the Denver Bread Company space in 2008.

Over the years, both businesses have become staples in the community, and the Denver Bread Company garnered a lot of recognition, including being named Best Bakery in Westword's Best of Denver 2014 and landing on national lists, such as Bon Appétit's Top Ten Best Bread Bakeries in America in 2010.

Now, though, the couple is moving on. "It’s been a long run — almost 29 years for DBC and nearly sixteen for VLC," they shared in an Instagram post. "We will miss you, our fabulous customers. We’ve been blessed with your support and we thank you so very very much for the years."