A beloved bakery business "famous" for its strawberry tarts once had more than 100 shops across Merseyside.
Decades ago, Cousins Confectioners was a familiar fixture across the region, selling everything from delicious cakes and Danish pastries to Devon Whip, sandwiches and more. Many will remember the large Cousins corner sign in Lord Street that was a major feature in Liverpool city centre until the takeover by Liverpool One, as well as the company's many shops and factory on Woodend Avenue in Speke.
Founder Mr Ernest Gibson moved to Liverpool from Ireland when he was 17 and after returning from active service in 1946, opened his first bakery shop in Aigburth Road, where the baking was done above the store. On February 4, he sold his first cake from the tiny shop and the following year his brother, Eric, joined him and they soon started to expand the firm.
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The business was called Cousins as at one stage, the family had a cousin as a sleeping partner in the development of the business. In 1960, the company joined Associated British Foods and opened its large Speke bakery.
By the mid-1970s, the company was a household name, with more than 100 shops and coffee bars all over Merseyside. At its height, Cousins Confectioners employed nearly 3,000 people and in 1980, it was reported that the business had 400,000 customers in their shops each week.
The brothers opened the first in-store bakeries, sandwich services and self service restaurants. Many will remember also spotting Cousins shops in Walton Vale, Penny Lane, Scotland Road, Stanley Road in Bootle and Hillside Avenue in Huyton.
Over the years, users on online blogs have said Cousins were "famous for their strawberry tarts". Some said it was considered to be a rival to Sayers and one person said they remember kids climbing up the wall at the back of the Speke factory where workers would give them "mashed and broken cakes".
Do you remember Cousins on Merseyside? Let us know in the comments section below.
Images, recently unearthed from our archives, Mirrorpix, offer a glimpse into the lost Cousins factory in Speke back in January 1981. One image shows the exterior of the site, with smiling workers inside and a bold Cousins sign above the entrance.
Another photo shows the final check from distribution manager Ron Rigney and cake production manager John Gilmour before the products leave the bakery at the Woodend Avenue factory. We also see icing expert Elaine Murphy busy at work on one of the company's famous wedding cakes.
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On May 31, 1980, the Liverpool ECHO reported how on his retirement, founder of Cousins Confectioners, Mr Ernest Gibson, said Merseyside workers are "the best in the world". he said: "It incenses me when I hear Merseyside workers being criticised.
"People in other parts of the country get a completely wrong impression of Merseyside workers. They are tremendous and they have a marvellous sense of humour. I wouldn't have wanted to work anywhere else in the world.
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In 2010, Ernest, who lived in Hoylake, died aged 95. Paying tribute, his daughter June said: " He was a brilliant man and a great father to me.
"He cared so much about his workers and saw them as extended family. He always tried to promote people where he could. The bakery business was his life and he worked very hard on it."
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