Meet Shani Vargo of Sagapo Breads in West Arvada

Today we’d like to introduce you to Shani Vargo.

Shani, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
Some would say much of my personality revolves around food – I have always enjoyed cooking, baking bread, and hosting dinner parties. I am a second-generation American of Greek descent and food is very central to my family’s culture. I am not formally trained but I learned many classic Ottoman and Greek recipes from my parents, my uncle, and my travels through the “Old World.” The foods I most enjoy preparing are Mediterranean and Latin foods, I especially love making fusions of them. The one constant in the meals I prepare – is homemade bread!

As a child, I loved hearing my dad speak fondly of his parents’ love for food and family. My grandfather, Yiorye (“George”), immigrated to the United States during WW1 and made a living as a bread baker. My father’s fondest childhood memories were getting up early on Saturday mornings to deliver bread with his dad. My grandpa instilled that love of food and family in my dad, and my dad instilled it in me. I am now doing the same with my own kids. 

Cooking and baking have only been my hobbies for the past couple of decades because I was a bit busy with a career in the Army. After I retired, I promptly grew bored and decided to go back to school to train up for another demanding career. But everything changed a year into my schooling – my one-year-old son developed cancer. Thankfully, I was in a position I could stop everything and move into Children’s Hospital with him for his treatment. Unfortunately, that resulted in my other young son feeling abandoned by me and his brother – he was too young to understand medical emergencies. Today my baby boy is in remission thanks to cancer research and the downright heroic work of the staff in the ER and the Oncology ward at Children’s Hospital. Something in me changed after going through that experience with my sons; I have since returned to school but changed my field of study to a more family-friendly one. I want to spend time with my family and do work that makes other people happy. 

When the pandemic hit, I noticed that people wanted to bake bread but there was a lack of ingredients at the grocery stores. After realizing it was nearly impossible to find yeast and flour locally anymore, I decided to create Sagapo Breads. I started with sourcing large quantities of all-natural and organic bread ingredients, measuring and packaging the ingredients in cute environmentally friendly bags, writing easy-to-follow baking instructions, and giving the kits away to my neighbors. I then started to deliver fresh baked Horiatiko (Greek style country bread) to neighbors. I finally turned Sagapo into a business and was blessed enough to be picked up as a merchant by the Westminster Farmer’s Market.

Sagapo was so named because it was the last thing I said to my father before he died this past February after a well-lived 93 years. If you’re wondering what it means, “Sagapo” is Greek, and it means “I love you.” Thankfully (strange as that sounds) my dad passed before the pandemic shut down the U.S., so it was one last opportunity for my very large family to get together. At my father’s funeral, I learned that the last thing my paternal grandfather said was also Sagapo – he said it to my YiaYia (grandma) in his final moments. When I bake bread, I think of my father and my grandfather and everything they both gave to all their descendants and I love them for it. Therefore, the perfect name for this company – was Sagapo.

Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
No, it has not been smooth and that’s all good. I am mom to two small kids (that sometime seem like ten small kids) and a full time student who is also trying to run a part-time business. Consistent child-care has been very hard to come by during the pandemic and it is nearly impossible to manage children, school, and a new business without consistent care. So, when I am between childcare, something has got to give, but it’s obviously not going to be my boys. 🙂 

I manage this (or try to) by scheduling out most of my days. When it is time to move from one thing to the next, I sometimes have to drive on without looking back. This is not easy for me because I don’t like to leave things unfinished. I do my best to finish when I am on-task, but it’s a challenge with two little dudes on a permanent mission to gleefully destroy our house. 

Despite most things not going as smoothly as I intend, I find ways to deal with it in my best formed plan turns into a total crap show. When I can swing it, I try and get some R & R for myself and my family to recharge everyone’s batteries. I’m also a big believer in mindfulness, meditation, getting outdoors to maintain health and balance, and embracing the imperfections that make life beautiful! 

Sagapo Breads – what should we know? What do you do best? What sets you apart from the competition?
About us: At this time, I am the only person at Sagapo, so I wear many hats from owner-founder to baker to website manager. This is a great experience for me, but I am really looking forward to hiring talented folks someday – I’m only good at a couple things and in learn-as-I-go mode with everything else. 

What we do best: Sagapo Breads specializes in making kits for beginner to advanced bakers to make delicious Mediterranean style breads in their own homes. The kits are pretty simple and include all the pre-measured ingredients (all-natural Italian wheat flour, Himalayan pink sea salt, organic sugar, and organic yeast) and a simple recipe all in environmentally friendly packaging. We offer four different flavors for the bread kits: chopped organic black olive, chopped organic garlic clove, savory spice (a dried spice blend), and Sagapo’s classic horiatiko (aka, the “OG,” our original bread recipe). We also bake amazing custom breads for our customers using the same ingredients and flavors you will find in our kits, or flavor combinations requested by customers. I think Sagapo’s most popular loaf is the heart-shaped roasted garlic loaves named the “Vampire Slayer.” One must love garlic to take this one on!

What sets us apart: I’d say it is Sagapo’s ability to change quickly according to customer’s wants and needs and my drive to keep Sagapo customers happy and returning. I take feedback and requests from customers seriously and make changes rapidly. For example, I have figured out delivery options for home-bound customers, and created recipes requested by customers such as a provincial spice loaf topped with lavender blossoms and a roasted red pepper parmesan loaf I named the “R2P2.” I respond quickly to customers who contact me with questions and am always happy to guide anyone needing guidance during their baking journey – for many, it’s been their first time making bread and I want to make sure it’s a positive experience!

What is “success” or “successful” for you?
As a mom of a cancer survivor and a combat veteran with multiple tours, my experience taught me a different definition of success. To me, success is measured with the happiness found in service to others, living a balanced life with healthy boundaries, finding joy even in darker times, and having the ability to adapt when things go wrong. 

Adaptation is critical to success – one of the best pieces of advice I ever received about adaptability was from a mentor I had in my 20’s. She taught me that success doesn’t always look like how you envisioned it would. Sometimes, the best thought-out plans can go wildly off the rails when you take the first step. To shed any bitterness you may feel and enjoy success despite the derailment, you find something awesome to do that you could have never done if things had worked out as planned. Then focus on making it something really special and be grateful for the unexpected opportunity. 

Contact Info:

• Website: www.sagapobreadkits.com
• Email: contact@sagapobreadkits.com

Image Credit:
Chuck Lepley Photography, Shani Vargo

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