INSIGHT

Who’s really baking for the future?

Local bakeries vs big brands

From old family recipes to sleek new store designs, bakeries across the UK are evolving fast. But as familiar names multiply on the high street, a quieter revolution is underway — one that might just reshape the future of food retail.

Gail’s Bakery

The bakery boom

Bakery is one of the largest parts of the UK food and beverage industry, up 1.8% year-on-year in 2024 (1). As many national bakery chains accelerate their openings - at the value end of the market Greggs, and the more premium Gail’s - established local chains are seeing the benefits of amplifying their own local roots, whilst updating their concepts and store to ensure relevance for their respective communities, bringing in new and younger customers to ensure current and future success. 

We have been working with two such family businesses in recent years who have an appetite to grow their brands, push boundaries and to build on their heritage and values in relevant ways.

Birds Bakery, still a family-owned independent business, is continuing to roll out their new brand and store experience.

A local community of relationships

Established in 1919, the Birds Bakery brand is much loved in Derbyshire and the business is proud of its place in the community; its strong enduring bonds with local suppliers, the generations of families employed by the business, and its focus on quality ingredients and products that are always ‘fresh as a daisy”.

Amplifying the local, community story is a key element of the Birds store rebrand, celebrating the brand’s long-term relationships, partnerships and icons to reinforce the rich emotional bonds that gives the brand a special place in their customers lives, with all the cues of the category.

Warm lighting, natural materials and handwritten signage reinforced the handcrafted excellence that results; while a stylish environment and engaging experience enhances the value perception of the products, winning customers of all ages and reinforcing its destination status for breakfast, lunch and treats.

Refreshed with local life in mind

In Hertfordshire, Simmons Bakers is a local, independent, family owned business, established in 1838, was also conscious of the need to evolve their brand and store experience. While their stores were recognisable and practical, they wanted to inject more personality and warmth to retain their distinctive relevance and position in an increasingly competitive market and reinforce their status as a much loved, local business.

Building on their own heritage, our Simmons concept was inspired by the rich textures and tones of fresh-baked bread, with a space is designed to be as welcoming as the aroma inside. From subtle golden lighting to soft, familiar shapes, every detail is a nod to the comfort of the perfect bake.  Updating the seating was key to adapt to changing local lifestyle and consumption habits where people are just as likely to grab a regular daily meal and coffee as well as a lingering treat on the weekend.

There is much evidence to suggest that consumers prefer to engage with brands with whom they have a relationship and bond of trust. These local businesses continue to be bold and ambitious whilst nurturing their local resonance and relationships.

Maximising the bakery category opportunity

Both Birds and Simmons are aware of the need to continue to evolve their concepts and sensitively attune their distinctive brand design to the specifics of the site and the location, recognising that in a competitive market the need to continue to be perceived as fresh, dynamic and relevant is a constant consideration.

The emergence of new players in the bakery sector reinforces the truth that customer expectations have changed, not only do they appreciate the value of affordable, quality product from local trusted, established brands, but they also value spaces which have become local destinations, attractive spaces where they can sit and enjoy a social experience, as a much loved daily ritual, rather than an occasional treat.

The accelerating growth of brand such as Gails is seen by many as welcome in raising awareness of the importance of quality bread and baked goods. As a premium priced product, Gails reinforces the value perceptions of brands such as Birds and Simmons where quality ingredients and products have always been central. The news that Pret is trialling a new concept, cafes that feel more like restaurants than takeaway shops is indicative of their strategy of targeting locations, including small towns outside London, indeed, this focus has fuelled their growth in recent years, with 80% of sites opened since 2023 being outside London.

As Clare Clough Pret’s UK boss has said Pret wanted  to become more of ‘destination for customers in a bit less of a rush who want a comfortable space to enjoy delicious food and spend time with family and friends”. Simon Stenning hospitality industry expert and director of Future Foodservice said “The competition has expanded, providing Pret customers with more choice’.  The competition is a ‘baguette made freshly for you in a nice cafe environment or a bakery’.

Pret will be up against against Birds and Simmons, local brands that are strongly embedded in their respective communities, with bakeries that serve their geographical area, and where they are literally, as brands, ‘baked’ in to local habits and rituals established over generations.

Caulder Moore can help maintain and strengthen your local community connection, carefully identifying and nurturing individual qualities and stories that resonate with customers, old and new. We weave these insights into the design concept, making it an intrinsic part of the visual language and bring to life your brands’ values in an unforgettable way.

With 30 years of experience, Caulder Moore understands that a brand cannot be static in its customer expression and experience; and that continued evolution is necessary to maximise the return on capital investment in new stores and refurbishments. With a non-traditional perspective on hospitality design challenges, we have the expertise to helps every brand create distinctive physical experiences that strengthen bonds with their existing customers as well as making them relevant and appealing to a new generation of brand fans. 

We can help you to embrace the emotion of brand encounters – with distinctive food and beverage experiences as the catalyst – create lasting memories for your customers, whoever and wherever they are.

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