Bread Ahead founder Matthew Jones says his bakery at London’s Borough Market has been told to wind down its operations because the business has become “too successful” and expanded internationally.
Mr Jones claims the decision could put 83 London jobs at risk and has launched a public appeal to save the flagship site, which includes the bakery’s original shop and baking school.
In a statement shared online, he said Borough Market had informed the company that it needed to leave the estate, citing its international franchising as part of the reason.
“I thought being successful was the whole reason of opening a business in the first place,” Mr Jones said, adding that he had built Bread Ahead without outside investment or borrowing.
He said the prospect of closing the Borough Market operation had caused “an unbelievable, devastating effect” and left him facing intense pressure over the future of the business and its staff.
Bread Ahead was founded at the market in 2013 and has since grown from a local bakery into a brand with operations in London, the Middle East and Asia. Its first United States site is due to open in New York in November.
The business has become particularly well known online for its doughnuts, sourdough and other baked goods. Its Borough Market premises also house the Bread Ahead Bakery School, which runs classes and masterclasses in bread-making, pastry and doughnuts.
Bread Ahead’s future at Borough Market
Mr Jones has argued that the company remains founder-led and should not be treated as a faceless chain because it has expanded beyond London.
“What’s happening in the UK?” he said. “Who in God’s name would want to shut down a wonderful, thriving part of a local and international community?”
He has urged customers and supporters to back the campaign to keep Bread Ahead at the market, using the hashtag #SaveBreadAhead. The bakery is continuing to operate while discussions with the market remain under way.
Borough Market said its relationships with traders were “really important” and that it valued their contribution, whether they were still trading there or had become part of its “alumni of success stories”.
The market said lease renewals were handled through a formal process and communicated to traders well before expiry dates. It added that it remained in contact with the Bread Ahead team, but that the details of individual tenancies were confidential.
Its spokesman said the process was applied “fairly and consistently” while allowing Borough Market to evolve as a food destination where independent businesses could thrive.
Mr Jones, who began his career as a chef after leaving school at 15, said he would do whatever was necessary to protect Bread Ahead and its employees.
