Our Story
Our company started life in a small pork butcher and pie shop in Scarborough and over the decades has grown in size, scope and ambition to the point we now have nearly 160 shops all over Yorkshire, Lincolnshire, Nottinghamshire and the North East.
Every single product in our range is made with the same care, detail and attention. We bake each and every day to ensure the freshest quality products reach our shops every day. We continue to innovate to meet the ever-evolving tastes and needs of all our customers, and make sure we have their favourites too!
We bake Fresh
We’ve been baking since 1885 and continue to strive to offer great quality handmade products.
From pies to pasties, sandwiches to cream cakes, everything is freshly baked each day by our skilled team of expert bakers.
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We keep things simple
be straightforward, be clear.
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We Deliver
Be accountable, Be collaborative, Be optimistic.
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We Care
Be fair, Be honest, Be resprectful
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We're Inclusive
We value diversity, we value all our colleagues for who they are and what they bring.
Our Story
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1885Founded by a young husband and wife, Frederick and Alice Coopland, Cooplands began trading as a small pork butcher and pie maker on Market Street, Scarborough. Their bestselling pork pies and savouries start to make a name for the Coopland family.
Frederick Coopland passes away at only 47, leaving his wife Alice in charge of the business and their four children. In 1915 a disastrous fire destroys the shop on Market Street leaving. Alice and her children with only the clothes they are wearing. She opens a new shop on Newborough, Scarborough, which remains company HQ for the next 45 years. -
1930sAlice Coopland passes away and her only son, Frederick Coopland (known as ‘Mickey’) and his wife Ellen (known as ‘Nicky’) take over the business.
In 1942, Frederick (Mickey) Coopland dies and his wife Ellen takes charge of the business.
After the war their son, Freddie, returns from the Navy and inherits the business, aged 17. Freddie trains in baking and confectionery and moves the company into bakery products. -
1960sHuge development on the Newborough site. The updated premises sees the town’s first self-service supermarket on the ground floor, with a restaurant above and a bakery on the second. During the 1960s, a further 11 shops, 2 cafés and state of the art bakery open.
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1980sCooplands current managing director, Paul Coopland, joins the family business in 1984. The company begins to grow again and quickly doubles to 10 shops. Plans are drawn up to find a new site to build a larger bakery.
In 1985 Cooplands celebrated their centenary. Paul Coopland, joins the business. The company begins to grow again and doubles in size. The new, modern bakery completes in 1991 at Eastfield, Scarborough. 8 years later, 10 more shops open which necessitates a 20,000 sq. ft. extension to the new bakery. -
2000sIn 2001, we gain the National Training Award for excellent training services for staff. Four years later, we establish an NVQ training centre and expand further by acquiring Hull-based bakery Skeltons and all 37 of their shops.
We continue to recognise the importance of high quality training and set up our own bakery college and take on 16 apprentices. The business grows rapidly as it acquires Woodhead’s bakery in Scarborough, Ainsley’s in Leeds and Peters Cathedral Bakers in the North East. This brings the total number of shops to over 155, supplied to from 3 bakeries. -
NowWe get an investment from BGF of £8.5m. This was used to accelerate the rollout of Cooplands shops, expand the sandwich van service and develop production facilities. As part of the changes Belinda Youngs is appointed as CEO in 2019.
During the pandemic we remain committed to serving communities by keeping as many shops open as possible. We launched an online service for essential food parcels, used our delivery drivers and vans to deliver to people’s doors and delivered over 1,200 food parcels to the most vulnerable and shielding.
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CSR and charity
Throughout the year we support a number of charities and projects in the local communities. We do this by giving monetary donations & food donations. So far in 2024 we have donated £16,000 to local charities.
Packaging
All our plastic trays are made using at least 50% recycled material and are fully recyclable. Plastic represents approximately 8% of our total materials used.
Our sandwich bags use PFAS free paper and our branded paper carrier bags are FSC accredited.
As a business we are constantly looking at alternative materials which are sustainable and recyclable, however, there will always be an element of plastic trays due the to the nature of the product and the need to protect the quality and presentation.
Our partnership with Too Good to Go
We have partnered with Too Good to Go to help reduce food waste. Through the Too Good to Go App, you can collect a Surprise Bag which includes a selection of our freshly made products at a reduced price.
Since the start of our partnership, 824,533 Surprise Bags of been collected. This has avoided 2,220 tonnes of CO2e emissions and equivalent to 387 flights around the world.
Careers with Cooplands
The reason our customers can taste the pride in our products is because of the pride we have in our staff. Their skill, training and passion is why our food tastes so good. We value each and every individual, and take care of each other like family. If you think you’re a Cooplands kind of person, have a browse of our current (and future!) roles.
