Baking Industry Awards 2024: Cutter & Squidge secures Online Bakery Business of the Year

This Online Bakery Business of the Year is one that sells baked goods via a direct-to-consumer website with an excellent design and a well thought out experience. It must also ensure that items are delivered in top condition with great appearance and taste.

Winner: Cutter & Squidge

The dedication to online was what swung the judges in favour of this London-based bakery, including a revamped website, lowered delivery prices, and specialised customer service team.

Co-founded by sisters Annabel and Emily Lui, Cutter & Squidge pivoted to the online space during the pandemic and hasn’t looked back, with 95% of its sales now completed through its website.

The brand offers an extensive range of giftable sweet treats including cakes, afternoon tea, and brownies as well as its signature Biskies (cake/cookie hybrids) which are available in flavours including Strawberries & Cream, Salted Caramel S’mores, and Blueberry Cheesecake.

Products were said to be delicious and exceptionally presented upon arrival, looking exactly how they did on the website. “It was a genuine treat to receive through the post,” commented one judge, while another commended the option to choose different packaging covers for different occasions.

This is exactly the experience that the sisters are aiming to create, as they explained: “We are creating cakes and treats for life’s important occasions, so we want to make sure our customers are taken care of and the process is smooth both pre and post purchase.”

Things are moving forwards with limited edition seasonal drops introduced over the summer, promoted to its audience via a robust email database and strong social media presence.

Finalist: Asda

Bakery is a key pillar for Asda both in-store and online as the retailer looks to provide customers with an ‘exceptional offer’ with ‘great value for money’.

Over the past year, Asda has reviewed its online bakery range, with a strong focus on in-store bakery lines, to ensure each item has an accurate fresh pledge icon to keep customers well informed on the shelf life of each product. As such, any that were deemed ‘best same day’ were removed from the online offering to maintain quality standards.

It has also sought to entice consumers through better lifestyle imagery and online events, especially around major holidays and celebrations. Each event gets its own landing page where customers can click through and shop all relevant products associated with it, such as ‘Easter Bakery’ and ‘Hot Cross Heaven’. The retailer has introduced bakery bundles too, like Mother’s Day Breakfast and BBQ Bundles in the summer months, which have been received well.

The judges loved the focus on in-store bakery as part of the online experience and praised the updated photography and extensive range of bakery items available.

Finalist: Fitzbillies

Fitzbillies is a household name in its hometown of Cambridge, where it has existed since 1920. Its online offering is a much newer addition to its remit, launching in 2019 to fulfil demand for its Chelsea buns outside of the city.

The buns are baked each morning, so they are packed and posted as fresh as possible. Fitzbillies also adds extra syrup to the package so customers can freshen them up. In 2023, the business extended its bun line-up and added a bake-at-home range so that customers can enjoy the freshly baked experience in their own homes.

Afternoon tea, picnic hampers, and a selection of postable cakes are also available via the website. Over the past 12 months it has invested significantly in online marketing to drive users to the website, building an impressive newsletter distribution list and social media following.

The website reflects the Fitzbillies experience and brand “beautifully”, expressed the judges, who commended the bakery’s efforts with online marketing. “The buns were delicious,” they added.