Swiss Haus bakery says it’s closed ‘forever’ after 4 months in new location

Swiss Haus, whose bakery roots in Rittenhouse Square date back nearly 100 years, has shuttered its location after four months, thwarting customers seeking its signature hazelnut and buttercream cakes.

A sign reading “closed!!!” with the emphatic notations “farewell,” “for good,” “not open,” and “forever” was spotted over the weekend on the door at 1740 Sansom St.

Owners Ronald Simms and John Proctor, financial executives who bought the brand in 2019 and then moved the shop from its longtime home nearby on 19th Street, did not return messages seeking comment. Building owner Allan Domb said he had not heard from them.

The Cristen family opened Swiss Pastry Shoppe at 35 S. 19th St. in 1923. It closed just before Christmas 2007. In early 2008, entrepreneur Jim Hausman reopened it with the same baker (Donna Feldman) and, facing unpleasant correspondence from the previous owner, rebranded as Swiss Haus. Hausman sold it in 2014 to Joshua White, who opened an Old City location in 2015 and closed in late 2018, just before the most recent sale to Simms and Proctor.

Swiss Haus’ most recent incarnation, which opened in September 2019, was a cafe setting.