One of the country’s fastest growing café groups has set out plans to open a new store in a former bank building.
Upmarket award-winning bakery chain Gail’s has submitted plans to East Cambridgeshire District Council to redesign the former Barclays Bank in Ely High Street and install new signs and retractable awnings.
Prized for its artisanal-style produce, Gail’s which was founded by Gail Mejia and Tom Molnar, opened its first outlet in Hampstead in north-west London a decade ago.
The former Barclays Bank in Ely which could become a Gail’s Bakery
The company has revealed plans to open 30-40 new bakeries across the UK in 2025. It currently has 152 stores, its milestone 150th opened in Watford in October.
The proposed Ely store, which is next to the city’s Grade I-listed Sacristy Gate and Goldsmiths tower and is within the city’s conservation area, will be the first branch of the bakery chain outside of the city of Cambridge, where there are three, in Cambridgeshire.
The alterations to the front of the former bank would, according to the planning statement, improve the overall appearance of the premises but ensure it remains in keeping with the surrounding street scene.
“As Gail’s seek to change the use of the commercial floorspace from bank to bakery, they have a need to increase the openness of the shopfront to showcase products, increase openness and generate footfall,” said the statement.
“These proposals, seeking the replacement of timber panels on the existing door and their replacement with glazing, will assist in achieving this.”
The proposal said the existing shop front door would be retained, ensuring the change to overall appearance of the building would be minimal, and retained the historic nature of the shop frontage.
The district council’s conservation officer, Chris Partrick, said the solid panelled double leaf door was a characterful feature and suggested it should be kept as it was rather than replacing some sections with glazed panels.
He also suggested that if an entrance was needed where people could see inside, that the internal lobby could be kept and the doors left open during the opening hours of the bakery.