Sales and profits have increased by more than 50% at Cake Box in the first half of its financial year, driven by new store openings and the acquisition of Ambala Foods.
The egg-free cake specialist, which is the UK’s largest franchise retailer of fresh cream celebration cakes, reported group revenue of £28.8m for the 26 weeks ended 28 September 2025. This marked a 53.5% increase from the £18.7m generated during the same period in the year prior.
Gross profit went up by 58% to £15.9m, while underlying EBITDA (excluding the impact of exceptional items) grew by a third to £4.6m. This growth came from positive trading at stores, noted the company, as well as from the maiden contribution of Ambala Foods said to be in line with the board’s expectations.
Cake Box’s £22m purchase of the Asian sweet treat specialist in March saw its interest costs increase with its underlying profit before tax falling a modest 4.5% to £2.7m as a result. During H1 FY26, Ambala recorded sales of £6.5m and underlying EBITDA of £400k.
The business accelerated expansion of its store footprint, which totalled 260 sites as of 28 September 2025. Nine new shops were opened during the period (compared to seven added in H1 FY25), located in the likes of Tonbridge, Dunfermline and Blackpool where the company said it had identified compelling growth opportunities and anticipated strong customer demand.
Another four new stores have been launched in the weeks since the first half ended. “With an encouraging pipeline for further expansion, we are well positioned to achieve our target of 25 more new Cake Box stores in FY26,” commented Cake Box CEO Sukh Chamdal.
Additionally, two new Ambala franchisee-owned stores were opened bring its estate to 24, comprised of 19 corporate and five franchised. Outlets in Preston and Glasgow have also been converted into hybrid sites featuring branding of both Cake Box and Ambala. A further eight franchised Ambala openings are planned by year end, confirmed Chamdal.
Franchise store sales demonstrated another period of strong growth resulting from marketing investment and launches of new products such as its Dubai style chocolate range. Total sales at franchises including kiosks were up by 14.6% to £47.6m, as like-for-like sales grew by 6.3% compared to the last year’s H1.
Cake Box also highlighted the significant growth in its sales via its website, up 25.9% year on year with 134k new customers online. Franchise online sales were revealed as £11.3m over the half year, a jump of 25.9% from the £9m in H1 FY25.
The business welcomed 2.6m website visits for a 18% improvement on the previous year’s first half period, while its subscription database increased 29% to 990k and its SMS database grew 32% to 390k.
Chamdal noted how continuing strategic investments in Cake Box’s digital platform has significantly enhanced its online presence. “Online sales have been a key growth driver, now accounting for 25% of franchise store sales. This momentum is expected to continue into the second half, demonstrating the effectiveness of our integrated online and offline customer experience,” he said.
Last month, Cake Box unveiled a five-strong range of treats inspired by South Asian desserts including a Bedana Cake, Rose Cham Cham Cake, and Gulab Jamun Cake.
With trading momentum from the first half continuing into the second half of its latest financial year, Chamdal said the company was on track to deliver full year performance in line with expectations “despite the consumer environment remaining challenging”.
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