Bringing the Independent Bakery Business into the 21st Century

Bringing the Independent Bakery Business into the 21st Century

Bakeries can be seen as something that’s old fashioned and have been overshadowed by the big chains such as “Greggs”, but Blackberry Bakery, based in Stanway, have built up their own reputation and can proudly boast of making all of their products themselves. Blackberry Bakery have two bases in Colchester, one down at the Hythe, which is the actual bakery and where everything is made, the other is the cafe on Blackberry Road in Stanway.

The cafe in Stanway has been a firm favourite with the people of Colchester for around 10 years now and is a thriving business, despite having some competition from the likes of Costa nearby. It’s not difficult to see why either. As soon as you walk through the door, an array of smells and sights, and all of the staff are so welcoming.

The great thing about the cafe is that there’s something for everyone and I would be shocked if you said there was something you wanted, and you couldn’t get it! It’s modern, relaxing and the food is so authentic and homely. There are newspapers delivered everyday so it’s somewhere you can go to read, have a cup of coffee, and enjoy one of their homemade pastries. 

The owners are Marta and Anthony, and they work so hard to ensure they can provide their customers with the best products. Marta runs the retail side of the business, and Anthony does the wholesale side, working out of the Hythe branch.

Marta is very customer focused and aims to provide every single person who walks through the door with what they desire, as well as ensuring the cafe has a relaxed and chilled vibe. As a small business, making customers happy is number one on Marta’s priority list. She’s happy to adjust items on the menu to suit you and to make your dining-in or takeaway experience the best it can be, and in return, she hopes it will encourage return custom. 

As a bakery, bread products are one of their best sellers, which goes without saying, but they also ensure that their products are fresh every day and are always served warm. They have evolved their products and menu to cater for their most popular items and are always adding new ones to the menu to keep it fresh and exciting.

If you were looking to go there to eat, you can choose from a variety of dishes, such as; homemade soup, fresh ciabattas, panini’s, bagels, sandwiches and cakes. All of them come with different fillings and you can even choose which type of bread you want – and not just from white or granary. The only thing you cannot order (despite it being requested) is fresh prawns. Marta does not like to sell them as they have such a short shelf-life and does not want to take the risk of serving fresh shellfish. 

Marta likes to create a relaxed atmosphere in the cafe and believes this sets her cafe apart from other competition in town, as well as her wonderful staff, and ethos of making the customer happy and creating products that they wish to enjoy. Everything is home-made and I feel like it is important to push this fact home as we all know that the big chains buy everything in, and nothing is authentic. Marta is Polish so she has introduced some traditional Polish cakes into the bakery, as well as her head chef making traditional English ones such as Eccles cakes and scones – which you can get in plain, fruit and cheese. All of the products are quite simply divine, and one of the hardest things to do when you go there, is trying to narrow down the choices and pick something! 

One last thing, the bakery can make celebration cakes and bread made to order as long as they have a day’s notice. Marta is more than happy to help you create something for your enjoyment. The cafe is open 7 days a week, Monday-Saturday 7am-16.00, and Sundays are 10am-16.00. They’re such a hardworking team who deserve all of the success that comes their way. They have a fantastic reputation, there’s something for everyone and most of all, they love what they do. 

If you haven’t been there before, I highly recommend you visit them soon! There’s parking outside and their food and bakes are truly tasty. 

Colchester Streets | Professional Photographer