Rise of Southport Sourdough

After their son’s health diagnosis, the Langley family found healing in the hands-on art of sourdough and built a thriving bakery that feeds Southport in more ways than one.

You never know when something hard might lead you somewhere beautiful. For the Langley family, that adventure began with a diagnosis. When Jamie and Jon Langley’s son Peyton was diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes, their world shifted, and life would never be the same, in unexpected ways.

Determined to find comfort foods that were nourishing and delicious for Peyton, Jamie dove into research and discovered that sourdough bread could be a healthy alternative for him.

“I read that sourdough had a lower glycemic index and was easier to digest,” she says. “I wanted something Peyton could enjoy without a huge sugar spike, so I started baking!”

Sourdough bread, the oldest form of leavened bread (dating back to Ancient Egypt), offers a slower, more gradual impact on blood sugar thanks to its natural fermentation process. The process also reduces gluten and breaks down phytates and lectins, which can block mineral absorption. So, it is rich in nutrients, easy to digest and gut friendly.

When Peyton tolerated her sourdough well, Jamie was thrilled. Inspired by other women across the country using sourdough to provide extra income for their families, she started making loaves to sell at the Oak Island Farmers Market in June 2024.

She brought 30 loaves to her first market. She sold out in 25 minutes.

The next week, she doubled the loaves and sold out in an hour. Soon, Jamie was hand-mixing 130 loaves a week and baking it all from regular residential ovens!

Looking back, it is incredible what the Langleys accomplished. Sourdough baking is a laborious art, especially without the proper equipment for producing at a large scale, but they did it. Each time they upgraded equipment, it came with a great sigh of relief and hearts full of gratitude.

“I am proud of how we started and what we grew from,” Jamie says. “It has taught us a lot, and all the hard work made each improvement to the business that much sweeter and valuable.”

It did not take long for customers to ask repeatedly, “Where can we get the bread this winter?”

By the end of that summer, Southport Sourdough was no longer a hobby. The Langleys moved to their current storefront at 706 N. Howe Street in October 2024 and are now thriving and well-loved in the community.

For those who know Jamie, Jon and Jon’s brother, Justin, who works in the business, it is no surprise that success came from their hands. Bread making may be the current chapter they are in right now, but working with their hands is not.

Both sides of their family encourage learning skills and working with your hands. Jamie, a woodworker at heart, has always been drawn to building, creating and fixing, and she or her mom built much of the furniture in their home. Jamie says her parents taught her that when you need something fixed or want something, just do it. Learn how to make it happen. That same mindset now fuels the bakery.

“There is something about creating and building something with your own two hands and having a beautiful, quality product that you created,” Jamie says. “It is so fulfilling. I think that’s why I enjoy making bread so much.”

Even though they are now baking more than a thousand loaves a week, every morning when the Langleys slide the bread into the oven they are still in awe.

Jamie watches the balls of dough — kneaded, shaped and intricately cared for over days — rise and transform. She is filled with wonder at all God has done and looks forward to the crispy, golden loaves of bread that will emerge from the heat and find their way to a family’s dinner table that very night, ready to be enjoyed, shared, savored.

“Who knew water, flour and salt could create such a masterpiece?” she asks.

Southport Sourdough is a true family business. Jamie does the scoring, baking and shaping. Jon mixes the dough each morning, works the register and handles some of the behind-the-scenes work. Justin is the #1 bread slicer (an inside joke at the shop), the Muffin Man and so much more behind the scenes. Every muffin sold in the store is his creation — and they are delicious! (Be sure to try the cookie dough muffins). His ever-changing flavors keep customers coming back to see what’s next!

From the very beginning, the Langley kids — Peyton, Landon and Thea — have been by their parents’ side in the kitchen, and now they are helping in the shop. The family legacy of learning skills and trades is clearly being passed on.

The sourdough bread-making process is long, methodical and meticulous. Each batch takes three days from start to finish, requiring precision and patience. It is exhausting and rewarding, hard and beautiful, much like the Langley family’s story.

Jamie and Jon, who homeschool their two boys, have taken something painful and turned it into something so beautiful. Through grit, sacrifice, persistence and grace, they have transformed a diagnosis into a calling — proof that with love, even the hardest things can rise into something nourishing.

And the bakery? It’s still rising.

The Langleys have found their rhythm and outfitted the store with proper artisan ovens and essential tools. The original sourdough will always be a best-seller, but the jalapeño cheddar and rye (perfect for homemade Reubens) are also house favorites. The sourdough chocolate chip cookies are a runaway hit. And Southport Sourdough has now expanded into a fresh market as well, selling locally sourced produce, dairy, meat and eggs.

“We want to feed our community with real, clean, healthy, local food. That’s our heart,” Jamie says.

Jamie is always listening and learning from the community.

“There’s such a diverse group of people here, and we’ve found ourselves wanting everyone to get a little taste of home even if it’s just for a moment,” she says.

One early customer still stands out to Jamie: “It was one of my first days at the Oak Island Market. A woman came and bought four or five loaves. That was a huge order at the time. I’ll never forget it. And every time she walks into the shop now, it still brightens my day.”

Southport Sourdough is more than a bakery. It’s a story of family, resilience and hands that create to bless others.

“We believe in getting back to our roots,” Jamie says. “And we’re so grateful to help feed our community, one beautiful, crusty loaf at a time.”

Sweet Facts ABOUT Sourdough

IT’S ANCIENT
Sourdough dates back more than 5,000 years to ancient Egypt, making it one of the oldest forms of leavened bread.
WILD BY NATURE
Sourdough rises using wild yeast and beneficial bacteria naturally present in flour and the environment.
FLAVOR TELLS A STORY
No two sourdough starters are exactly alike. Climate, flour and even the baker’s kitchen create distinct regional flavors.
NATURALLY TANGY
That signature sour flavor comes from lactic and acetic acids produced during fermentation.
EASIER TO DIGEST
The long fermentation process reduces compounds that cause digestive discomfort, bloat and sensitivity in many people.
IT’S ALIVE
A sourdough starter is a living culture that can last for generations when properly fed and maintained.

FRESH BREAD, THIS WAY
Southport Sourdough and Fresh Market
706 N. Howe Street, Southport
Southport Sourdough and Fresh Market