The Rushden Echo, 14th December 1962, transcribed by Jim Hollis
Rushden Bakers Fight the ‘Big Brothers’
Rushden bakers, by extending and modernising their premises so that cakes and bread can be made on the spot, are making efforts to combat the larger combines whose products are made outside the town. To overcome staff problems, they have successfully pressed for the introduction of day-release classes for apprentices in bakery.
The main advantage the small bakers have over their larger competitors is that they are able to make products in their own premises and serve them shortly afterwards to customers, who buy them fresh from the oven. Because their ovens are behind the shops the vital time factor, which means that other concerns have to make their goods earlier, can be eliminated.
The bakers are being helped by Government subsidies to install modern plants – although most of the bread and cakes are made by hand.
In conjunction with the Eastern Region of the National Bakers’ Association, local bakers, looking towards the future, were recently successful in having a day-release course introduced at Northampton Technical College, where future craftsmen will be trained.
Difficulty
It is hoped that this scheme will help attract more youths into bakery – something which has presented quite a lot of difficulty in the past, making it hard for bakers to get sufficient staff.
Thirty-three-year-old Mr. Brian Crane, proprietor of Crane’s Bakery, Higham Road, Rushden, told us that, until the classes were introduced, there was a vacuum in most local firms’ staffs; younger people were not interested in taking up bakery as a career.
“We have always found it difficult to get youths into the trade, but now things are improving and at last we are getting the right people to carry on the craft,” he said.
Cinderellas
Mr. Crane, whose grandfather started the 74-year-old business he now owns, explained that small bakeries were too often regarded as the Cinderellas of the industry. The recent relaxations of Government subsidies were now helping owners considerably to extend and modernise their premises.
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Mr Brian Crane
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Working at Crane's, Mr Horace Golding has been baking for 27 years
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Mr. Crane said: “Before these subsidies, competition was immense, but now we are able to produce our own goods on the spot and sell them oven-fresh to our customers.”
About extensions at his bakery, carried out three weeks ago, which enable him to serve cakes over the counter to customers, he commented: “We can now meet our customers’ demands for freshly-made cakes. Our sales are increasing each week.”
Experience
Mr. Crane explained that, from personal experience, he found that mass-produced cakes and savouries accounted for a fall in consumption in the past. He felt that people were becoming more partial to home-made baking and getting“rather tired” of factory-made bread and cakes.
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Mr Bryan Laughton
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The reason for the difficulty in getting more young people to take up baking as a trade was said by Mr. B. Laughton, who keeps a shop at 90 Moor Road, Rushden, to be the hours worked, which he felt were “much too long.”
The modern large factories can offer short-time with good money, he said. Before the war it was easy enough to recruit trainees to the baking industry because the average wage of a bakery worker was £3 5s, and the average wage of, for example, a boot and shoe worker was only about 52 shillings.
This situation, however, did not now exist, he said.
He added that there were definite advantages in having a bakery actually on the premises, as home-made foods were always popular with customers.
“There is no problem in selling today. We could sell more than we make any day,” he said.
Mr. G. W. Cobley, of G. W. Cobley, Ltd, High Street, Rushden, said that he felt having a bakery at the rear of his shop was an attraction for customers, who enjoyed the fresh smell of the baking.
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