Henrico Small Business Spotlight: Lovell’s 31

There’s a whole lot of love surrounding Lovell’s 31. And owner Wilma Kidd hopes you taste it with every bite of her gourmet bread pudding.

Kidd’s love for bread pudding was born out of childhood trips to Old Country Buffet after church. 

Kidd loved its version of the treat so much, the 69-year-old Henrico County local grew up determined to make her own.

After lots of encouragement from her family, Kidd created Lovell’s 31. The business license came in March 2021, and Kidd sold her first puddings at a Dorey Park event in June of the following year. Just a couple weeks after that “very encouraging” pop up, Kidd’s puddings found their first permanent home at The Market at 25th. 

But what are Lovell’s 31 bread puddings actually like? The ingredients vary from flavor to flavor, but the base is always a butter top sliced bread. And Kidd says the texture is unique. She considers it a cross between cake and pie with a light and fluffy inner consistency and a crunchier exterior.

“It's not your mama's bread pudding,” Kidd said, adding that her bread pudding should be eaten with a fork – not a spoon. “It's different from your typical bread pudding, which can be wet and soft.

“We like to think of it as bread pudding reimagined.”

Kidd prides herself on making out-of-the-box flavors that are pleasing to the palette. But she also delights in making a product that’s more than just food.

“What's interesting is that our bread pudding seems to evoke an emotion,” Kidd explained. “People say they feel something when they eat it, and sometimes they'll say to us, ‘I can taste the love in this bread pudding.’”

Lovell’s 31 offers many flavors that vary from season to season. Think eggnog and gingerbread flavors in the winter, pumpkin in the fall, peaches and cream in the summer and many more. Some of Kidd’s upcoming springtime flavors will include strawberry and cream and banana strawberry, with a feature flavor of apple pie.

“Fan favorites” of Lovell’s 31 – which are served year round – are the banana cream and maple sweet potato flavors. If you want to eat the latter like a pro, Kidd recommends warming it up and topping it with fresh bacon for a breakfast treat.

Kidd’s favorite flavor? A bread pudding with apples, cranberries and raisins that’s topped with a dusting of powdered sugar.

“My favorite, which takes me back to sort of the nostalgic old-fashioned bread pudding, is what we call our Harvest Fruit,” Kidd said. “We have it available all year, but we really highlight it more so in the fall.”

No matter what flavor you decide to buy, Kidd has one request: Take it home and heat it up.

“We think it tastes even better if you get that little crispy crust back on top of it and serve it with ice cream, whipped cream or fresh berries,” Kidd said.

So, where can you buy the treats from Lovell’s 31? If you’re looking to shop local, head to Ellwood Thompson's, Good Foods Grocery, Libbie Market or The Market at 25th. Flavors will vary by store and time of year, but the Banana Cream and the Maple Sweet Potato are a safe bet at any of the stores.

Online ordering is another way for Lovell’s 31 fans to shop. Just head to the Lovell’s 31 website and click “Order Now” to get started. Order by Thursday, and Kidd will deliver your bread pudding sometime the following week. 

“A lot of times, we will meet that client or go deliver it directly to them,” Kidd said. “For instance, if they're in the city working, we may meet them at work… Most of the time, it's a one-on-one delivery.”

Online orders are restricted to the family “pan” size and local deliveries only, but you can always reach out to Kidd via her website if you’re curious about flavors beyond what’s listed on the site.

“If you're ordering a pan online, you really can get any flavor we make except for Eggnog,” Kidd said. “If we can get our hands on that fruit or those ingredients, then people online can order anything.”

Pop-up market purchases are another way to taste Lovell’s 31 bread pudding. Kidd says she tries “to keep a full calendar of events,” but summers are busier for pop-ups  than winters. Most recently, Kidd was at Richmond’s Chocolate, Whiskey and Wine Festival. Check out the Lovell’s 31 website for links to her social pages where she posts about upcoming events.

Overall, Kidd wants you to know that Lovell’s 31 is about so much more than gourmet bread pudding. For Kidd, it’s a love letter to her family. The company’s name and logo, for instance, are an ode to her granddaughter Angel Lovell and her son Vaughn (Angel’s father), who passed away at 31.

“Lovell's 31 is, to me, saying Angel’s dad,” Kidd explained. “The heart is because I love them both so much. And there are angel wings around the logo because her name is Angel and he's an angel.”

Kidd says her late son helped her chase her bread pudding dreams. In fact, he pushed her to apply for Deep Fried Masters – a pilot TV program on Destination America. Kidd was ultimately accepted onto the show and figured out a way to deep fry her bread pudding. She came in first place in the first round of competition, and kind words from the judges helped her realize her potential.

“That kind of gave me that bit of encouragement – that ‘oh, well, maybe you are on to something,’” Kidd said.

Fast forward to today, and Kidd’s family is still a huge part of her business. Every year on her late son’s birthday in February, Kidd will have her family and friends over to celebrate her son and taste test new bread puddings. This year’s creation was a pineapple flavor.

“My family approves every bread pudding that comes out from us,” Kidd said. “They all have to say, ‘It's ready… you can put this on the streets now.’”

Beyond the potential addition of pineapple to the Lovell’s 31 lineup, Kidd has a few other exciting developments in the works. One being ice cream with bread pudding “inclusions.”

“It’s where they add the bread pudding to the ice cream,” Kidd said. “Sort of like if you bought Ben and Jerry's and they have chunks of fudge or chunks of brownie in the ice cream, it would be chunks of bread pudding.”

This wouldn’t be the first time Lovell’s 31 concocted the delicious combo. In the past, Kidd collaborated with Richlands Dairy Farm to create an ice cream flavor called Maple Sweet Potato Dream with her maple sweet potato bread pudding. This time, the blueberries and cream bread pudding is the target for a makeover, and Kidd is talking with multiple Virginia dairies. So, stay tuned for updates on that.

“Soon, our customers will be able to get ice cream and bread pudding together in one bowl,” Kidd said. “We’re hoping to have that out this summer.”

Kidd also hopes to bring Lovell’s 31 to your local freezer aisle and help the company spread its wings. She’s wants to expand business to stores in Ashland and Fredericksburg and, eventually, across the country. 

“As that grows, our delivery path will have to grow as well,” Kidd said.

Lovell’s 31 has big goals, but Kidd’s top priority remains the same: making customers happy.

“We love our customers,” Kidd said. “Just seeing them eat it and smile. . . or do a little dance is what brings joy to our hearts. So, we look forward to continuing to spread the love through our bread pudding.”

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