A Hamilton business has enjoyed great success during its first year, including an impressive donation of £1500 to local charities.
Owner and baker, Dr Carol Lang, who also has a successful career in archaeology, uses her trowel less these days and is more often seen with a spatula at the Cadzow Bakehouse on the town's Quarry Street.
In fact, as the business celebrates its first birthday today, it has become a real family affair with Carol's husband Stewart, sister-in-law Mairi, daughter Emily and her partner Ben, now also digging deep to keep the shelves full.
Carol told Lanarkshire Live: "My family always joked that all I did as an archaeologist was make mud pies, now I’m doing it for real. You could say my last career was in 'ruins', but this new one is certainly taking off!"
Carol believes the continued growth and success the Bakehouse has experienced has only been achievable through the encouragement of other local businesses, who were always on hand to give much needed advice, combined with the loyalty of their brilliant customers and the support of her family.
She added: "We live, work and trade in Hamilton, and want to be an integral part of that community and contribute to its growth. I think our customers understand that.
"Part of our community ethos involves giving back. For instance, at Christmas, along with our customers, we managed to raise over £1500, shared between Hamilton District Foodbank and Lanarkshire Rape Crisis, with a further 14 full bags of donations being raised for the Hamilton Churches Drop In Centre."
With most of the world at a standstill, and having received the keys only three days before the first lockdown commenced, the bakery took a risk and officially flung open its doors to customers on June 17, 2020.
In the intervening 12 months it have gone from strength to strength, offering an ever-expanding range of fresh handmade breads, homemade bakes, as well as showcasing an abundance of quality produce available from many other small Scottish suppliers.
“It’s undoubtedly been an incredibly challenging year for so many people, but thanks to the local community we’ve managed to hit the ground running, whilst also being able to pay it forward to others in need through the likes of our Christmas fundraisers," Carol added.
The Cadzow Bakehouse is based at 164 Quarry Street, Hamilton.
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