Invicta Bakeware, the equipment manufacturer and supplier, joined forces with Sergeant Michael Cottingham to create a cake for the Royal Mail’s 500th anniversary.

The Royal Mail approached Sergeant Cottingham to produce its anniversary cake after his design had previously won Gold in the army’s prestigious annual Field Catering and Culinary Arts Competition, which was judged by HRH Princess Anne in July.

The cake, which was cut by the Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall, took two weeks to make and was decorated with a gold and red centred crown representing the logo and flanked by icing post boxes.

The fruit cake was made in a tin specially made and donated by Yorkshire manufacturing company Invicta Bakeware, which is renowned for manufacturing tins for royal occasion cakes, the most recent being the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee cake.

Invicta Bakeware’s managing director John Waddington said: “We are delighted to have played a role in the production of the original prize-winning cake and then subsequently the cake that featured at the Royal Mail’s birthday celebrations.

“Invicta prides itself on meeting the requirements of its customers, whether from our stock items or bespoke orders.”

The Royal Mail celebration cake was given to The Prince’s Trust Morgan Stanley Centre in Poplar, East London, to be enjoyed by the young people taking part in Prince’s Trust programme activities.

In January, Invicta Bakeware hired a new manager to keep up with customer demand.