Bakery to close after 70 years of trading

The bakery cited the pandemic, bereavement, escalating costs, and dwindling footfall for the closure

A bakery which has traded in a Herefordshire town for 70 years has announced it will be closing its doors for the final time in September.

Central Bakery in Leominster has been run by the Burke family for more than 50 years, with three generations at the helm.

Announcing the closure on Friday "with deep sadness", the bakery team said it had been "a very difficult and emotional" decision.

The announcement cited the pandemic, the death of David Burke, and escalating costs as part of the reason to close.

They also said dwindling footfall, exacerbated by the development of the High Street and Corn Square, had played a role and "made a huge negative impact on the business".

"Unfortunately we cannot sustain the business any longer," their announcement said.

"We have loved being one of the focal points of Leominster and most of our customers and people of Leominster won’t remember a time without the Central Bakery being there.

"We would like to take this opportunity to thank all of our customers for your many years of support."

The bakery said the coffee shop would close "in a few weeks", followed by the bakery as a whole by the end of September.