Evoke co-owner Tom Lambert with staff members Becky and Hayley at the newly opened Evoke Bakery at Kippax Fair. Photo: Lucy Ridge.
I feel a strange sense of deja vu when I head out to interview Tom Lambert at his new Evoke Bakery location in Kippax. It was just a few years ago that he and business partner Jayson Brockman were run off their feet after launching the original Evoke Bakery at Curtin shops during the festive season.
When we first met, Tom had told me about his hopes to one day expand the business to serve neighbourhood locations around Canberra, and that day has finally arrived.
“We had been actively looking to expand for around 12 months, and looking quite seriously in the last six months,” he told Region.
“When this space came up, we realised it was exactly what we were looking for.”
Their new location at Kippax Fair was previously known as Hearthstone Bakehouse, and the business owners also ran the bakery at the Spence shops. After health problems led them to sell up, the Evoke team jumped at the opportunity to purchase both locations.
Residents of Spence are eagerly awaiting the new bakery’s opening in 2026. Photo: Evoke Bakery/Instagram.
The larger kitchen space at Spence has become their second production site, and Tom said he and Jayson were focusing on ensuring good systems were in place to keep all the sites fully stocked and running smoothly before he opened Spence for retail trade. Many of the staff from the old businesses have been retained and some equipment will be upgraded to boost efficiency.
But the site at Kippax Fair is up and running, with plenty of folks popping in for a loaf of bread or some pastries after they do their grocery shopping. While Kippax is ticking away nicely for now, Tom said he and Jayson were also interested in the site for its potential.
“I think the centre at Kippax is really due for some redevelopment, but we wanted to get our foot in the door,” Tom said. ”We wanted the locals and whoever decides to take on the centre to get to know us, and like our product and what we do. So when this site gets an upgrade, we’ll be part of it.”
Tom and Jayson are also excited to be part of the Spence community.
“There’s kind of something nice about the suburban bakery, you know? There’s a romance to it: the bakery and a little supermarket on the corner, butcher next door. That’s how I reckon it should be done,” he said.
“And it’s a busy little centre at Spence shops, with the grocer also running a little cafe [Grocer & Grind]. And it’s surprisingly close to some of those northern parts of Gungahlin, like Casey. So even though Spence is small, we’ll actually be the local bakery for quite a lot of people.”
Kippax and Spence are lucky to have people like Tom, with his can-do attitude, coming in with their daily bread.
Evoke Bakery at Kippax Fair is currently open from 8 am to 4 pm (closed public holidays and 2 January), but will expand opening hours in the new year. Evoke Bakery at Spence will open to the public in 2026. Follow Evoke Bakery on Facebook or Instagram.
