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Crust Vegan Bakery serves sweets with a side of justice — and it's expanding to a larger location
Manayunk bakery Crust Vegan has a saying: 'We keep it political because food is political.'
Founder Meagan Benz and her team of 17 employees have weathered online bullying, lost customers and even friendships because of the company's outspoken stances. But for her, the risks are worth it.
'If we can't be loud about our politics, then there's not space for our business,' Benz told It's a philosophy that has helped Crust Vegan become a hub for community, activism and plant-based pastries.
For every potential customer who is turned off, there are others who see the bakery and its attention to social justice as a safe haven, especially for people from marginalized communities navigating a social environment that is increasingly hostile.
Enough Philadelphians are drawn to it, in fact, that Crust is growing, with a move to a larger space in East Falls coming this fall.
A North Carolina native chooses Philadelphia
There are plenty of reasons to start a business in Philly — maybe it's your hometown, or the place you went to college or maybe a job relocated you there. In the case of Benz, who was born and raised in North Carolina, she started Crust Vegan in Philly entirely by choice.
Benz became a vegetarian in high school, and went vegan in college. She started baking as a hobby to satisfy her own sweet tooth, since there were no places where she lived that sold vegan pastries.
As her baking skills developed, she became more and more creative.
'I was really interested in developing new, awesome recipes,' she said. 'I wanted to make the vegan version as good as what I remember the non-vegan version being.'
After graduating from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro with a design degree, Benz started to accept requests to bake birthday cakes for people in her social circle.
It had the potential to be a real business. At the same time, Benz said, she was ready to leave North Carolina for someplace new. In 2013, she started checking out different East Coast cities to find a good fit.
'I moved to Philadelphia because it was a city with a lot of vegan food, but not a lot of vegan sweets,' Benz said. After about a year doing freelance design and working a job as a vegan pastry chef, Benz and her then-business partner launched Crust Vegan in East Falls in 2015.
They opened their first storefront, the current Manayunk location, in 2020.
Giving back and supporting local: A priority from the start
From the beginning, giving back and supporting local farms and businesses was a priority.
Some of the organizations Crust supports are local community-based, while others, such as If Not Now Philly, have a more global focus.
'Right now, we're donating to a couple of Jewish-led organizations that are in support of Palestine, because we feel really, really strongly about the US role in supplying weaponry to Israel's military,' Benz said.
Trans rights, and LGBTQ rights in general, are also a focus.
'We love Morris Home and the Attic Youth Center, which do a lot of work for trans and queer people in Philly,' Benz said. 'And we always love donating to animal shelters and sanctuaries, but we do try to expand beyond just animal advocacy. We want to also support human rights and the rights of our planet.'
Future plans: Add seating, grow the menu, host events
While the Manayunk location Crust has lived in for five years is in a good spot for foot traffic, Benz looks forward to moving the storefront to East Falls, where the bakery still has its commercial kitchen. The move will, with the help of an SBA loan, consolidate the kitchen and storefront, and will expand its public space.
For the first time, Crust will have in-house seating.
'We're going to add to the menu too, so that we can accommodate people coming to dine in,' she said. 'We're getting an espresso machine, and we'll launch a full beverage menu and maybe some more lunch menu options.'
They'll also be able to host events, something Benz has always wanted to do for the community they serve.
After 10 years, she said, she feels like Crust is finally becoming the best version of itself.
'I would love for it to be known as a space that has lots of events hosted for the queer community of Philly, as well as for people of color,' Benz said. 'I want it to be inherently known that Crust is the place that has everyone's back, as long as there's no hate involved.
