Brace's Bread has invested £4m in a new production line in a bid to grow volume and offer a wider range of baked goods.
The 120-year-old Welsh family-run bakery in Crumlin, which supplies to all major supermarkets in South Wales and the west of England, was able to invest in the new line with the support of a £2.5m financial package from HSBC UK and HSBC Equipment Finance.
The installation of the new line means that the bakery can now expand its range of baked goods to include the manufacture of bread rolls, tea cakes and hot cross buns.
The new production system allows the bakery to produce up to 16,000 rolls an hour which will add to the one million products it sells each week. Since it was installed, the bakery said it has produced two million packs of six hot cross buns in the first quarter this year.
Director Jonathan Brace, the fourth generation to run the business with Mark Brace, said: “Since installing the new production line, we are now in a position to expand our volumes and offer a wider range of roll products to include tea cakes.
He added: "We’re thankful to Sian Williams and Scott Ritchie at HSBC UK for their continued support in the expansion of our business and for making the process as seamless as possible for us. Since the production line was installed in January up until Easter, we managed to produce nearly two million packs of six hot cross buns.”
Simon France, deputy head of HSBC Equipment Finance (UK), said: “We’re delighted to support such a well-respected home grown business that has become Wales’s favourite bakery. It’s great to see Jonathan and his team expanding the business to produce a wider range of products and we’re excited to see the business continue to flourish.”
