A COATBRIDGE bakery is celebrating after scooping a prestigious industry award.
The Mad Batter was named the best independent bakery in the country at the Scottish independent retail awards at a glittering ceremony in Glasgow last month.
The Coatbank Street bakery and coffee shop, owned by Graeme Neil and David Frame, has had a rapid rise since opening just 20 months ago.
Votes from its loyal customer base saw it nominated for the regional independent awards back in April.
That was reward enough for the pair and their staff; but after progressing and impressing judges before the final, the Mad Batter was crowned as Scotland’s best independent bakery – leaving Graeme and David in disbelief.
Graeme told the Airdrie & Coatbridge Advertiser: “To win overall is absolutely amazing.
“We can’t believe this has happened so soon
after opening in November 2017.
“You just don’t think about these things when you start a new business.
“The judges looked at online reviews, our
Facebook profile, Trip Advisor and also came into the shop.
“A lot of our reviews mention customer service so that speaks volumes about our staff and how vital they are to us.
“This is a reward for everyone in the shop as it’s definitely a team effort.”
Graeme runs the front of house and business aspect of the bakery while David works with colleague Caroline Kay to create unique products in the kitchen.
While customer service and online presence was an aspect of the Mad Batter’s success in the awards, they reckon their creations also set them apart from the competition.
David continued: “We want to bake cakes that you don’t get elsewhere in the area.
“The beauty of the Mad Batter is that customers don’t really know what to expect to see on the counter when they come in.
“We have a couple of consistent best-sellers that are always around like our cheesecakes and cupcakes but we’re always thinking of new combinations.
“We do a lot of tarts too and the Bueno and Nutella toppings are popular on them.
“We named a product ‘Sheena’ after my mum who is no longer with us.
“She loved white chocolate Toblerone and condensed milk, so we make pancakes and waffles with two types of toppings based on that.
“It’s not hard to keep coming up with new things as I feel like I’ve been thinking about this for my whole life.
“Caroline is so good to work with and she’s a huge part of why the business is doing well.”
