Bakers Delight

{{Infobox company

| name = Bakers Delight

| logo = File: Bakers Delight Logo..jpg

| image = File: Localbakery.jpg

| image_caption = Bakers Delight store in Hawthorn, Victoria

| type = Franchise

| foundation = {{Start date and years ago|1980}}

| founder = Roger Gillespie, Lesley Gillespie

| location_city = Camberwell, Victoria

| location_country = Australia

| area_served = {{Unbulleted list|Australia|New Zealand|Canada|United States}}

| key_people = Elise Gillespie, David Christie (joint CEOs)

| industry = Bakery Franchising

| products = Bread, pastries

| num_employees =

| num_locations = 700+

| homepage = {{URL|https://bakersdelight.com.au}}

}}

Bakers Delight is an Australian-owned multinational bakery franchise chain, with franchisors in Australia, New Zealand, Canada and the United States. There are over 700 stores worldwide, with Australia having over 500 stores.

History

Bakers Delight was established on 1 May 1980 by Roger and Lesley Gillespie. Lesley and Roger, a third-generation baker, opened a single bakery on Glenferrie Road in Hawthorn, Victoria.{{cite web|url=https://www.bakersdelight.com.au/company/|title=About Bakers Delight AU|website=Bakers Delight|access-date=5 August 2022}}{{cite news | url = http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/opinion/the-rise-and-fall-of-our-daily-bread/story-e6frg6zo-1225854419081 | title = The Rise and Fall of our daily bread | journal = The Australian | author = Asa Wahlquist | date = 17 April 2010 | url-status=dead | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110406202204/http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/opinion/the-rise-and-fall-of-our-daily-bread/story-e6frg6zo-1225854419081 | archive-date=6 April 2011}}

In 1995, the franchise opened their first international bakery in Auckland, New Zealand.{{Cite web |last=Scherer |first=Karyn |date=2024-09-25 |title=Franchise aims for more dough |url=https://www.nzherald.co.nz/business/franchise-aims-for-more-dough/B7237VUANJG27MKXM5KOCEXQRA/ |access-date=2024-09-25 |website=The New Zealand Herald |language=en-NZ}} Today, there are 19 bakeries in New Zealand.{{Citation needed|date=September 2024}}

Bakers Delight entered the Canadian market in 2003, under the name COBS Bread, and now has over 140 bakeries in five provinces and five bakeries in the US.[http://www.cobsbread.com/about_us/index.htm About Us] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090912234507/http://cobsbread.com/about_us/index.htm |date=12 September 2009}}

In 2017, Roger and Lesley Gillespie took a step back from the business and appointed their daughter Elise Gillespie and her husband David Christie as joint CEOs.{{Citation needed|date=September 2024}}

Bakers Delight now operates over 700 bakeries globally.{{cite magazine |author=Kate Kendall |date=30 July 2009 |title=Moments with Marketers: Chris Caldwell |url=http://www.marketingmag.com.au/careers/view/moments-with-marketers-chris-caldwell-1446 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090807122434/http://www.marketingmag.com.au/careers/view/moments-with-marketers-chris-caldwell-1446 |archive-date=7 August 2009 |magazine=Marketing Magazine}}

Community

Bakers Delight and Breast Cancer Network Australia (BCNA) began a long-term partnership in 2000. Since then, Bakers Delight has raised over $25 million for BCNA with their annual Pink Bun campaign that runs for three weeks in May.{{Citation needed|date=September 2024}}