Five reasons to enter the Baking Industry Awards in 2024

The deadline for the Baking Industry Awards 2024 draws near, meaning there is no time like the present to shout about your achievements.

With 13 categories to enter, there is something for bakeries of all sizes – from the UK’s biggest brands to independent family-run firms, and everyone in between. We’ve also got awards for individuals who shine bright, outstanding baked goods, and businesses which go above and beyond.

The deadline for entries is Monday 22 April, so be sure to submit yours to be in with a chance of winning. Need more encouragement? Here are just some of the benefits from entering:

Receive the industry-recognised seal of approval

The Baking Industry Awards are now in their 37^th year – that’s nearly four decades of celebrating the best this illustrious and innovative sector has to offer.

As such, they are recognised industry-wide and can help to raise your profile even further. This starts with your moment on stage – during which many choose to thank their team, suppliers, and customers in front of the 500 key decision makers in the room – and can continue for many years.

“It was such an unreal moment to even be nominated for the award, let alone to win it. It’s great to receive recognition for all the work that goes into being a baker,” says Jordan Skeet, the 2023 Rising Star recipient. “It has given me so much more drive to accomplish all my future ambitions and dreams.”

Take time to reflect on your success so far (and learn from the process)

Every entry starts with an online form, which looks to garner key information about the person, business or product being entered. From there, the judging process varies depending on the category as we want to ensure every entry is judged appropriately and thoroughly but could include product testing, site visits, or an online interview conducted by our team of experts (including a representative from British Baker, the sponsor, and an independent judge).

The process allows you to analyse your work and learn from it, as well as take time to reflect upon your goals and achievements thus far.

“Taking the time to learn from the process itself is possibly the best thing you can do for your business; it helps you develop and grow and above all improve what you do,” explained Catherine Connor, co-owner of Lovingly Artisan – the bakery behind the Malted Barley Sourdough Tin which took home the trophy for Speciality Bread of the Year in 2022.

“The questions allow you to think about your bakery, where you are currently, to reflect and focus on your achievements so far and ultimately what your goals and ambitions are for the future,” Connor added. She described the judges throughout the process as “kind and understanding”.

Enter the Baking Industry Awards today!

Despite the firm’s success, Connor is open about the fact that Lovingly Artisan doesn’t win everything it enters. “We give it a go; when we don’t win, we learn from the experience,” she added. “It’s about trusting the process and learn and developing so you don’t stand still.”

This could allow for success in the future as well. Megan Roberts, who secured the Rising Star Award in 2019, had previously been named a finalist not once, but twice. She put the constructive feedback from the judges to good use, which eventually led to her taking home the trophy.

Secure new opportunities for yourself and business

Winning a Baking Industry Award can open doors. It puts you and your business in the spotlight in front of 500 decision makers on the night and countless others afterwards. This can lead to new business opportunities, listings, and experiences.

“It has given us more credibility amongst bakeries and, off the back of it, we have had suppliers and partners, who were looking to reduce their food waste, reach out to us and become partners,” explains James Eid, founder of Earth & Wheat, which took home the first-ever award for Sustainability Initiative of the Year at the 2022 event.

Baking Industry Award winners often feature heavily among the speaker line-up for the spring and autumn British Society of Baking conferences, allowing another opportunity to share your story. The upcoming spring event (taking place on Thursday 18 April) includes representatives from several 2023 winners such as Lidl, Wildfarmed, and Just Love Food Company.

What’s more, previous winners have also been invited to participate in judging opportunities for the awards, offering them a peek behind the scenes, as well as joining the panels for Britain’s Best Loaf.

Generate coveted positive publicity

Taking home a Baking Industry Award, or even being selected as a finalist, can result in coveted media coverage for your business in local newspapers, magazines, radio, and TV stations. In some cases, the national media may even come calling.

A cube croissant, which was crowned New Bakery Product of the Year 2023, secured TV coverage with BBC South and further publicity on local radio while two-time Baker of the Year Tim Goodwin from The Street Bakeshop took local reporters on a behind the scenes tour drumming up coverage.

All finalists are featured in British Baker articles detailing their success and the reason why they have been selected as a finalist in their category. But that is just the start. Those unveiled as champions receive further coverage on British Baker.

They are also supplied with a ‘Make the most of your win’ pack from the British Baker team, which includes a press release, winner’s logos (to be used how they see fit), and social media assets to help share the good news with local press and customers.

Lidl took full advantage of the pack after winning Bakery Retailer of the Year 2023, proudly displaying the winner’s logo on advertising across its platforms.

Thank your team for their hard work

It’s no surprise that many winners use their moment on the Baking Industry Awards stage to thank their team – people are, after all, the lifeblood of any bakery business.

“This award is very special as it appreciates the input of all of the team,” notes Ania Wadolowska from Old Store Norfolk, which secured the Customer Experience Award in 2023. “We all know that the daily routine of a bakery is very hard work and full commitment to the process. It felt so special to be able to receive such recognition… and to share the process from nomination to accepting the trophy on stage with our loyal customers who genuinely felt part of it. Seeing how happy they all were for us made it incredibly gratifying for weeks after receiving the award.”

Many choose to proudly display the trophy in a place for all staff to see. Stephens Bakery, which was named Craft Bakery Business of the Year in 2021, took its gratitude even further by giving every person in the business a letter from the directors, which thanked them for their contribution, as well as a voucher and tipple of their choice.