The Rustic Crust building at 31 Barnstead Road in Pittsfield. Rachel Wachman—Monitor staff
Pittsfield’s Rustic Crust, the town’s third-largest employer, closed its doors last week after nearly three decades of business, laying off dozens of employees, some of whom had worked there for many years.
Employees received a letter, viewed by the Monitor, notifying them they were being laid off “due to economic and industry forces beyond our control.” Some layoffs took place in the days and weeks prior to the company closing, but a mass layoff occurred Friday after employees worked a full day.
Paul Cote worked at the company for over 13 years. He was laid off from his position as a team lead last Tuesday, right after returning from vacation. Cote, who said he basically lives paycheck to paycheck, worked two hours that day before he received the news.
“It’s a lot of stress,” Cote said. “Everybody there was like family. Once you’re in a job for so long, you get really good at it. There was nothing in that building I did not do. I’ve worked every department.”
The company, founded in 1996 by Brad Sterl, let employees go with no severance pay or payout of their accrued time off. In a press release Monday, the company stated that the private equity owner could not continue to fund the business.
“Both lenders, local New Hampshire Bank, Walden Mutual Bank and national equipment lender, PMC Global, Inc., were not able to accept the terms from two leading private equity groups attempting to save the business in the last ten days,” the press release said.
Rustic Crust sold frozen pizzas and ready-made crusts at stores such as Whole Foods, Market Basket, Hannaford, Stop & Shop, and Publix. When the Pittsfield factory burned down in 2014, the company rebuilt and continued to pay employees in the interim. In the years since, the company has faced monetary troubles, including overextending in the 2022-2023 financial year.
“Unfortunately, the Company has not recovered but is seeking support from its lenders, and outside investors to restart its core private label division in one plant,” the press release states. “Thus far, the bank and equipment lender have not shown any interest in negotiating with new equity partners and appear willing to allow this major regional employer to liquidate.”
Pittsfield resident Janice Oliver left an 18-year position in Concord to join the company two years ago as an accounting assistant. She felt the end coming for a few months.
“In any business, as an employee, whether you work in an office or on the floor, you can feel the shift in demand and product,” Oliver said. “When you see things slow down, you kind of know.”
She was laid off with the majority of employees on Friday afternoon and said she could tell it was rough for Sterl to have to let people go.
“He cares, and he was deeply upset,” Oliver said. “He grew the company from infancy up to adulthood, and to have to close his doors I can guarantee you was not the easiest choice.”
Sterl and Rustic Crust could not be reached for comment.
Nicole Levesque worked as a quality assistant for less than a year. She was laid off last Tuesday with several others. A mother of four, she needs to find another source of income to support her family.
”It’s horrible,” Levesque said. “I was laid off prior to the doors closed. I thought it was me and I should have done something better.”
Learning about the mass layoff on Friday built a clearer picture of the situation for Levesque, who said she could tell the company was struggling in the time she worked there.
”It’s not a surprise it happened but it absolutely stinks that I’m in the position I’m in because I have no job now. I have no car and no license. I get only as far as my feet can carry me,” Levesque said.
The day he was laid off, Cote immediately began searching for a new job to continue paying off his mortgage and putting his three children through college.
“This can hurt us,” he said. “Now going and starting off at the very beginning again, it’s tough. But I’m gonna keep my eyes open.”
In her search for a new job, Oliver reached out to the Pittsfield community on Facebook and was heartened by the responses she received.
“I wasn’t sure where to go,” Oliver said. “I know you have unemployment and internet resources. Sometimes with word of mouth, people know more about what’s happening around you because they’re in it themselves so they’re able to point you in the right direction, and it was nice to see that and know what people do care.”
Rachel Wachman can be reached at rwachman@cmonitor.com.
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