Bakery chain Gail’s plans to open 40 more outlets as sales soar

Sales at Gail’s retail arm rose almost 23%, more than double the pace of its wholesale division, which supplies Waitrose, Ocado and Amazon among others. Photograph: Jill Mead/The Guardian

The upmarket bakery chain Gail’s is planning 40 more outlets after sales rose by a fifth last year as it opened 36 new bakeries and sales to supermarkets increased.

The cafe and retailer, which currently has 185 sites, said sales rose to £278m in the year to the end of February but that pre-tax losses widened to £7.8m, from £7.4m a year before, as costs rose and it spent millions on opening new outlets, according to accounts filed at Companies House.