Our Story

The Rise of The Bread Queen 1998

It stared with One Loaf
On 28 June 1998, in the leafy loveliness of Wimbledon Village, a single loaf changed everything. Sold from our tiny shop with big dreams, it was golden, crusty, yummy and very much the beginning.

A Chef Walks In... 2000

Enter stage left: a chef from a private catering company in Wandsworth. He’d been secretly buying our bread in the shop (flirting with carbs, if you will), and finally asked:

“Can you supply us?”

The chef? The wonderful Mark Connolly of By Word of Mouth.

The answer? Yes.

The twist? He’s still with us today. (We love a loyal king.)

The Dippy Years 2000 - 2002

Wholesale meant deliveries, which meant: buy a van.

We found a blue Ford Fiesta for £150. The number plate ended in DPY, so naturally, she became Dippy.

We gutted the back seats, made her a makeshift bread-mobile, and hit the road.

Eventually, Dippy went to the great garage in the sky — we upgraded, but we’ll never forget her.

Big Move, Bigger Oven 2002

We outgrew our 35sqm bakery (think walk-in wardrobe energy) and took a mighty leap to a 5,000sqm space.

Yes, it was expensive.
Yes, it was stressful.
No, we’re not doing it again in a hurry.

Our First 5-Star 2003

Next came the Four Seasons Park Lane. A fabulous German chef brought us in.
He’s moved on, but guess what? We still supply him, just at a new postcode.

Selfridges, Baby

Supplying Selfridges’ restaurants was a moment.
Game-changer.
Proof-of-concept.

We’re still baking for them today — and still love them like it’s our first order. (That goes for all our customers.)

Word Got Around... Quietly

We didn’t shout. We didn’t show off.
We just kept baking, delivering, and saying yes to quality kitchens across London and beyond.

Some of them are fancy. You know the names. We don’t always name-drop, discretion is part of the magic. “Can you supply us?”

Of course we can.. and all of them being loyal kings!

2010 Hello, Highlands

We started going nationwide, kicking things off with the glorious Gleneagles.

Fast-forward to 2014, and we were honoured to supply them when they hosted the Ryder Cup. Yes, golf and good bread — a natural pairing.

Bigger Bakery Dreams 2018

We needed more space again. The thinking started.

Then… well…

2020 PAN**MIC Pivot not Panic

Hospitality shut down. Orders stopped.
But the Bread Queen never crumbles.

We turned our loading bay into a shop, rolled up our sleeves, and served the public directly.

Queues formed. Smiles returned.
People left with pastries and happiness in hand. That’s when we remembered: we love this part.

2020 Hastings: Why Not?

We opened a kiosk on Hastings Pier. Slightly random, yes — but it made sense at the time. (And you’d be surprised how well focaccia goes with sea air.)

Then came our pop-up café in Hastings Old Town. Locals loved us. We loved them right back.

We stayed ‘til 2022, baking, brewing, chatting, and absolutely catching the bug again for public life.