Discover the Bakery Brand of the Year 2026 finalists

Thanks to our category sponsors

Brands focussed on sweet treats, as well as savoury patties, wraps, and frozen morning goods have been unveiled as Baking Industry Awards 2026 finalists.

The Bakery Brand of the Year category, sponsored by Craggs & Co, recognises outstanding performances in response to changing consumer needs and market conditions. It has judges looking for a solid brand strategy backed by excellent availability, innovation, and marketing.

Find out more about the half dozen finalists below:

Dougies Goodies

Frank and Georgina Warwick’s 2022 takeover of the Northern Irish sweet treat specialist brought fresh ambition and a clear vision for growth, whilst staying true to its values. Indeed, the eponymous founder Dougie was kept on and continues to play an active role in the business, which increased turnover ten-fold in the years since its acquisition.

Celebration cakes remain the cornerstone of the brand, while French Fancies (Chocolate and Pink varieties) and Jammy Dougies are said to have built loyal followings of their own.

Some of the company highlights over the past 12 months include reaching a milestone 100 retail partners, and establishing a Cake Collection Point network across Northern Ireland to allow customers to order custom and speciality cakes online and pickup from their local store. Joining its two retail shops in Ballymena and Belfast was a pop-up at CastleCourt Shopping Centre, noted as having an extremely high footfall that helps brings the Dougies brand to a new audience.

Judges commended Dougies for its focus on personalisation and seasonal products, which has shown a positive impact on sales growth. “The team should be incredibly proud of what they have achieved in the last year,” said a judge.

Flake Bake

A finalist in the category for the second year running, Jamaican patty brand Flake Bake has continued to increase brand awareness through the likes of a £150k TV ad campaign paid for by the Channel 4 Black in Business initiative, which reached an estimated nine million viewers.

An objective over the past year has been to convert this exposure into stronger retail performance. Flake Bake patties were switched up from a seasonal listing to a part of the core range at Aldi, resulting in sales doubling year-on-year to £2m.

It has looked to maintain a position as one of the most visible and culturally relevant brands in the patty category, and will look to grow beyond this after recently securing a new listing for ready meals.

Flake Bake’s “unique and charming narrative” was enjoyed by judges, who also liked it demonstrations of retail success and ambition. This includes taking Jamaican patties into the mainstream as well as NPD ideas set to broaden the brand’s appeal to new groups of consumers.

Griddle Bakery

Co-founders Sophie McGregor and Ella Harland have evolved Griddle from kitchen experiments in a London flat in 2019 to a fast-growing challenger brand helping to change consumer perception of frozen bakery.

The year past has seen the brand secure a national listing with Tesco for two waffle SKUs, and expand its range including an indulgent new format, Brioche French Toast, which marks a move away from HFSS compliancy. It also completed a brand refresh with “warm, uncompromising, and deliberately human” creative direction across packaging.

Revenue improved by 52.9% year-on-year in FY25, with growth rate forecast to double in the next financial period and an ambition to go from £846k to £11.5m over the next three years through increased distribution, product innovation, and marketing investment.

Judges found Griddle to be highly differentiated and underpinned by strong consumer insight. “They have a firm idea of their audience and a marketing strategy that targets it,” commented a judge.

House of Cinn

Created during lockdown as a way to fund a community project supporting people sleeping rough in the capital, this cinnamon roll brand has gone from home kitchen production and Instagram sales to a dedicated manufacturing unit and major supermarket listings, with turnover up by 157% year-on-year to £1.8m.

The business remains 100% bootstrapped by its co-founders David and Itse, whose focus over the past year has been on expanding its footprint within Sainsbury’s and increasing awareness and on-shelf visibility. House of Cinn also invested heavily on in-store sampling campaigns to win over consumers one bite at a time.

Having predominantly sold single-serve options or mini buns for on-the-go snacking, the company unveiled new Tear & Share Cinnamon Buns over the summer to tap into demand for shareable occasions. It is now sizing up a break into the wider foodservice sector.

Judges liked the clear, purpose-led brand strategy, whilst praising the “fantastic-looking products” and “eye-catching packaging” that help give the range great standout on fixture. “They have a strong founder story that feels authentic,” added a judge.

Mission Wraps

Mission Wraps was launched in the UK in 2000 and is owned by global tortilla giant Gruma, which has routes tracing back to 1949 in Mexico.

Available in Tesco, Sainsburys, Asda, Morrisons, Co-op, Booker, Spar and via Ocado, the brand is currently worth £56.6m having grown sales by just over a third year-on-year and shifted 9,2m additional packs. Innovation played a large part in its recent success, with roughly a fifth of its sales attributed to non-core lines such as Protein, XL, Wholemeal, and Carb Balance, accounting for 83.2% of its growth.

It also rolled out the latest run of its ‘Wrap Mission Your Way’ marketing campaign to highlight different wrapping styles adopted by consumers. And it successfully implemented high profile brand collabs on social media, such as with Hellmann’s Mayonnaise, Princes Tuna, Florette Salad, Eat Lean Cheese, and Happy Eggs.

Judges lauded the brand’s innovation, saying it was highly effective at responding to consumer trends like protein-carb balance, and had helped to drive significant growth. One judge described Mission Wraps as “the go-to for many due to its strong marketing and PR”.

We Love Cake

Also returning as a Bakery Brand of the Year finalist this year is We Love Cake. Made by Cumbria-based, family-run bakery manufacturer Bells of Lazonby, it was launched in 2012 to meet growing demand for free-from sweet treats that deliver on taste and indulgence without compromise.

With a range spanning cakes, traybakes, slices, brownies, tarts, and more sold at Tesco, Sainsbury’s, Morrisons, Asda and Amazon, as well as wholesale via Central Foods, the brand appeals to not only consumers with dietary requirements but also the growing number of shoppers making lifestyle-led food choices. Hero products include Chocolate Orange and Raspberry Ripple Cake Slices, with innovation accelerated over the past 12 months including launches of Breakfast Muffins, Carrot Cake and Cinnamon Swirl slices.

Additional expansion of single-serve slices into foodservice and strengthened retail partnerships have delivered strong commercial performance of 28% value and 22% volume growth year-on-year. Its forecast turnover in 2025 was £5m, a million pounds better than the previous year.

The brand’s clear vision to move the free-from category from niche to mainstream was very considered and supported by insightful NPD, noted judges. Figures showing solid growth are “proof that the strategy is working,” said a judge.