Bernie and Fyvie Gunn are preparing to bake their last bagel, but don't worry — Gunn's Bakery isn't going anywhere.

The North End institution, founded on Selkirk Avenue in 1937, is about to change hands from the Gunn family to Winnipeg chef Jon Hochman.

"We've come to the realization that nothing lasts forever, so we wanted to pass it on to somebody that we feel is going to have the same care for all our traditions that we have. And I think we found him," said Fyvie Gunn, 76, who's spent his entire life working at the bakery his father Morris started 81 years ago.

"When I was 18 years old and working in the bakery I thought to myself, 'Gosh, I'm 18 years old and I'm working in a bakery. What am I going to do for the rest of my life?' Now it's [decades] later and I'm still doing the same thing."

See inside and meet the Gunns:

The North End institution, founded on Selkirk Avenue in 1937, is about to change hands from the Gunn family to Winnipeg chef Jon Hochman. 2:25

Gunn's began during an era when Selkirk Avenue was the epicentre of Jewish life in Winnipeg.

"It was fabulous," recalls Fyvie. "There were butchers. There were fish places. There was everything. I always tell people you could have lived and died on Selkirk Avenue in those days and everything could be Jewish."

A photo hanging on the walls at Gunn's Bakery shows Morris Gunn, who founded the bakery in 1937. (CBC)

The bakery is now one of the last Jewish institutions on the avenue.

"It's a funny feeling, no question about it," added Bernie, 81. "We've been here for so long, though, and the change has been gradual over the years."

While Selkirk Avenue changed, the Gunns made few alterations to their father's recipes, even as they augmented the original lineup of baked goods — bagels, poppyseed rolls and pumpernickel bread — with more modern items, such as apple jacks, feta-spinach knishes or gluten-free pastries.

They also felt pressure to build a second outlet or even relocate south of the Assiniboine River. But they remained on Selkirk, where the bakery was renovated from front to back in 1979 and now stands as a living link to the avenue's eastern European, early-20th-century past.

Fyvie and Bernie Gunn say they resisted pushes to open a second outlet or leave Selkirk Avenue. (CBC)

Today, Gunn's remains a Jewish bakery — and continues to be certified as kosher — even as its new owner-operator sees it as more of a Winnipeg institution.

"I think it means a lot to a lot of people. I don't necessarily think it has to be categorized as 'Selkirk Avenue' or 'Jewish community,' said Hochman, a 32-year-old chef best known as one of the original partners in the now-defunct Sherbrook Street Delicatessen.

He said he has two silent partners in his purchase of the Gunn family business, but no plans to change a single existing recipe.

"It's the product people love and I need to make sure to maintain that. And that's what's most important to me," he said, adding Fyvie plans to remain with the bakery for as long as it takes to show him the ropes.

"With the blessings of Bernie and Fyvie through this whole transition period, I still like to think that they're gonna be around. So it's not just me. There's still going to be part of the family."

Gunn's Bakery says it's apple jacks are so popular, they're copied by other bakeries. They now sell as sugar-free version, too. (Trevor Brine/CBC)

Some of Gunn's clients have been buying bread at the bakery for nearly as long as it's been open. Helen Gregorchuk said she's been coming for 61 years, during which time her kids and grandkids have come to know the bakery as well.

"They come take my stuff right out of the house. Seems to walk right out of the doorway. It must have feet," she joked.

Keeping customers like Gregorchuk happy will be Hochman's primary task.

"It's intimidating at first, but you know like I've been coming to this bakery since I was a very young boy, so it's nothing new to me," he said.

"I'm proud to be taking over. It's huge shoes to fill. And yeah, nothing's going to change. So come say hello."