Coventry Bakers and Bakeries

Argon, Yes you are correct, I had forgotten it was part of Allied Bakeries. Looking in the newspaper it was amalgamated into Allied Bakeries in 1944. And they sold Sunblest Products. Philip. I have just read in the newspapers that in 1962 Savages opened a new up to date bakery on Stonebridge Highway, Savages, Mothers Pride. It was then part of British Bakeries Ltd. It was opened by the head of the group Lord Rank. I am not sure of the vans Philip, but there seemed to be some sort of code, official or otherwise, that if one if the local bakeries had trouble getting the bread out another would chip in to make sure the people got their bread supplies. Perhaps the vans were something to do with that. About when are you talking.

Anne, I remember when my mother ran a small general grocery shop in Coundon, Savages used to deliver a bread rack full of fresh crusty bread early in the mornings but there were no sliced bread at that time. Seems to me it could have been during the early 50's. Hence the saying - 'best thing since sliced bread'. The smell of that bread has long gone.

You can't beat the smell of fresh bread. Dad used to have all sorts on the van, he used to deliver to the shops. He did not have fixed rounds as he was a supervisor and would go all over the place. He often delivered to the American air force camps like Mildenhall. We loved it when he did that as they used to have a special fruit loaf that was delicious. He did deliver sliced which was in wax paper at that time but a nice crusty unsliced loaf was best. For a time we used to fetch bread from a small local bakery near here, still going, just for cottage loaves with a burnt top, but we stopped having them when Roy broke a tooth on it one day, biting through the crust. On a Saturday it was our job to sweep the van out so we could have a cream cake and the smell was lovely.

Dreamtime, where was your mum's shop ?

By the mid/late 1970's there were two major Bakery Groups, British Bakeries and Rank Hovis McDougal. Prior to that, Spillers French had been a major Baker, they had joined up with the Co-op, if I recall correctly. Over the years, they had bought out most of the Independents. Going back some years, most towns had their own large Bakery, or even 2. I worked for the company that supplied "Baker-Perkins", the major Bread Oven manufacturer, with the gas/oil burners that heated the ovens. Consequently from the early 1970's onwards, I worked in most of the major bakeries up and down the country. Many other products/companies used the Baker Perkins Bread oven too. Mr Kipling, up near Barnsley, used a Baker Perkins Bread oven to bake most, if not all of its products, as did Pork Farms, the Pork Pie maker, around Stoke on Trent area. Speedibake, in Northampton, used a Baker Perkins bread oven to part bake its frozen products. Speedibake was actually in the premises of a former bakery. Always loved working in bakeries, always very interesting plants. Every facet of engineering/electrics in one place.

Anne, No. 66 Batsford Road, behind the Holyhead pub. It was a small general store in a row of terraced houses. Like many just after the war that popped up on corners. It was actually my Uncle's property Percy Dunn who owned a Dunn's shop somewhere in Whitley as well. I daresay it has reverted back to a terraced by now.

Thanks Dreamtime, not far from where I lived then and my mum had a sheltered flat in Lammas Road, the bit the other side of Moseley Avenue opposite the Holyhead. I believe there were some classrooms there for Moseley Avenue in the 50's.

Yes Anne, In Beaumont Cres. nearly opposite the Alvis, a wooden building built to take two classrooms with a little wood fire for heating. It was in Moseley Ave. I used to take piano lessons with Mr.Kell near to the tennis courts/park. Wasn't Cedars Ave. leading off the shopping centre (Moseley Ave.) there but I have forgotten the name of the church on the way (was it St. George's?). Then the chippy further up Cedars Ave. who served the best scratchings imaginable. Sorry, here I go again - what does crispy bread have to do with scratchings. I can't imagine eating them now.

Hi all, I can almost taste the conversation that's on going just now. One of my newlywed duties was driving Pam & Her mum, shopping to Nuneaton most Saturdays. My treat was being treated to coffee & whatever at Yoxalls. Somewhat off topic as I've stretched the boundary. Yoxalls had their own in-house bread bakery. What a treat! Thank you all for your contributions to this.

Dreamtime, St George's is in Barkers Butts Lane which is off the shopping centre but it leads into Cedars Avenue. My route to school was along those roads to Coundon Court.

Bobby Savage`s was in Argyle St taken over by Mothers Pride around the mid to late 50`s. I started there in 61 and it was MP then. Eventually they moved to Stonebridge Highway (Rowley Rd) that was at the time the most modern bakery in Europe. When Savages had horses & carts the stables were in a street that ran between St Osburg's and Brays Lane. Eventually the stables became the workshop for the vans. Suttons was in Maudsley Rd which was Sunblest owned by Allied Bakeries. Before that, if I can remember what my Dad told me, it was Crown and before that Nixies.

I used to go to the youth club at St. George's with my friend , Alison Barry, who lived on Batsford Road. I think it was on Thursday night but I went to St. Osburg's on Friday as I was raised Catholic.

Sorry I intruded on the bakery site with my youth club story. I've just checked and there isn't a Youth Club thread. Anybody interested?

Heaven's above Linda, I can't remember that far back. Better move quick back to the bakery or Neil will be after you.

I worked as a Saturday vanlad from the new bakery in Rowley Road. I worked with Alec Guy. My dad was despatch supervisor (Arthur Osborne). He worked for Bobby Savage and moved to the new Bakery. The stables were in St Agatha's Road and these became the garage for the vans. Still there today.