Gympie’s Panini’s bakery and Cafe shuts on back of 2022 floods

Customers have been left saddened by the sudden closure of a popular Gympie bakery, which only last year was feted as region’s best by the public.

Panini's Bakery and Cafe (pictured here are 2021 staff members Maddie Harragan, Rosie Stolzenberg, Jodie Baxter, Mimi Rogers, Donna Dunmore and Nikki Ross) have suddenly shut, announcing the news on Facebook.

A popular Gympie bakery has closed its doors permanently in a shock end-of-year decision, saying this past year had been the “hardest year yet”.

Panini’s Bakery and Cafe’s owners announced the closure on Facebook on Wednesday, saying the decision followed a period of hardship.

“(This year) has been the hardest year yet, due to the floods and personal health reasons, we have been tested, turned upside down and stretched to our limits,” the post said.

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“Our hearts are heavy leaving behind what we have worked so hard towards for the past six years.”

The bakery had been a favourite for Gympie residents, and feted in a public vote as the region’s best in 2021.

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Panini's Bakery and Cafe was flooded in the February 2022 disaster as the Mary River reached its highest level in more than a century. Its owners said the floods were one of the reasons they have shut up shop, along with personal health concerns.

The family-operated business had been a fixture in Gympie for more than 50 years.

Its history included a name change, having once been called The Golden Sponge.

In February the shop was damaged by floodwaters that reached their highest level in more than 100 years.

In announcing the closure, the owners thanked customers for their continued support across the years.

“We have made friendships with so many of our beloved regular customers, worked alongside so many amazing staff members and found a family within Panini‘s Gympie,” they said in the post.

“We are so grateful that we got the opportunity to try and bounce back after the February floods, and can’t thank the community enough for supporting us in our hard times.”

“We ask for privacy during these times as this decision has not come easily.”

Customers took to social media to share their support and heartbreak at the shock decision, with the post drawing more than 250 responses in less than 24 hours.