Fermento: growing steadily, one loaf at a time

Food and drink

Carlos Pérez's Malaga-province-based bakery is set to continue its expansion across Spain and is opening its first shop in Ronda

Marina Martínez

It was in his blood. His destiny lay in the bakery, a path first trodden by his grandfather Juan in Alcaucín in the Axarquía. Years later, Carlos Pérez has revolutionised the trade both with his Fermento bakery chain and with Juanito Baker, currently one of the most widespread burger bun and brioche brands on the market.

Years of research led him to a dough with the acidity, texture and moisture that truly convinced him. He was after a quality product baked in a traditional oven, free from industrial processes, an artisan bread with a long fermentation. That has been the philosophy of Fermento since it was founded in 2018 as a small Vélez-Málaga bakery. It now has 32 shops across Spain, 25 franchises and seven company-owned. Most are in Malaga province.

Eight more are planned to open in the coming months: Alicante, Murcia, Bilbao, Cordoba, another in central Madrid, a second location each in Granada and Seville, and one more in the province of Malaga, specifically on Carrera Espinel in Ronda.

He tries not to change what works; his flour supplier from Coín has been with him for eight years

"The idea would be to have a presence in every province, but I don't like making expansion plans, it leads you to make decisions you may not be able to follow through on, so we go step by step, and if we need to slow things down a little, we will."

He says Fermento works well because locations are studied as thoroughly as possible, though the real key, he insists, is simpler: "Our success is without doubt the bread, and constantly maintaining its quality." He tries not to change what works. His flour supplier from Coín has been with him for eight years. "We have more stability now," says the man also behind Julieta Coffee, who works constantly on new recipes and special breads, among the most popular are pumpkin and raisin-and-walnut.

He also intends to "keep growing with Juanito Baker", expanding its line of burger buns and artisan bread for the catering sector. Plans are in place to enlarge the facility in Vélez-Málaga, with an investment of six million euros and a workforce of over a hundred.

In the meantime, Fermento continues to expand alongside a project particularly close to his heart: raising awareness of bread's role in the Mediterranean diet. Through schools and sporting events, they have already reached more than 20,000 children. The company also supplies bread to Málaga CF and several other clubs, including Racing de Santander, Sporting de Gijón and Leganés.