Scottish Bakers, a membership organisation which supports the bakery trade throughout Scotland, has announced the programme for its annual conference [5th-6th May], at the Hilton Glasgow, promising to tackle the key issues affecting the sector today.
Scottish Bakers president and McGhees director, Ian McGhee, will focus his speech on the resilience and creativity of the sector which has endured one of the toughest trading years in memory. With soaring energy and commodity costs bearing down as it continues to recover from the pandemic. He will reflect on the work he has been involved in throughout his first year to support the trade.
Delegates will also hear from Neil Gray MSP, Cabinet Secretary for Wellbeing, Economy , Fair Work and Energy as he delivers a keynote address to conference taking questions after this.
A discussion on employment law, wellbeing and recruitment sees a panel of professionals shine a light on these vital business practises helping delegates to find new ways to support their people, to get the best from them and to reward their efforts.
This will be followed by a baker-led debate on how bakers large and small can benefit from the provision of training, specifically apprenticeships, as a means of recruiting and retaining valuable staff and as a way of improving productivity and efficiency, reducing waste and ultimately saving money.
The conference will then hear from Matthew Bond, creative director of Project D. The business, established in 2018, was the first ever recipient of the Online Bakery Business of the Year Award at the 2022 BIA ceremony. Project D now turns over around £3.5 million and employs more than 100 staff. Their Tik-Tok video of a mega heart-shaped doughnut being filled, decorated, and then devoured garnered more than six million views on the social media platform.
Matthew will talk about their phenomenal growth plans for the next 24 months and how moving away from mainstream “bricks & mortar” sites during the height of the Covid pandemic helped pivot the business to online sales which now account for 20% of all sales.
The follow up sessions on how new outlets, customers or ways of reaching existing customers can bring business benefit along with a focus on trends and innovations completes the day before we hear from our reigning Scottish Baker of the Year champions, Paddy and Jane from The Three Little Bakers.
Conference host and Scottish Bakers Ambassador Mich Turner MBE will facilitate the day.
Saturday evening of course sees the Scottish Bakers crown the 2023/4 Scottish Baker of the Year in a glittering gala celebration.
Ian McGhee, president of the Scottish Bakers said: “The programme for 2023 is full of content that reflects the positive outlook of a sector keen for continued growth against a backdrop of ongoing challenges. I would like to thank the team at Bakers House, and particularly our outgoing chief executive Alasdair Smith, for curating what promises to be a thought provoking and intensely interesting weekend for our industry.”
