Baker says UK business climate and market lease dispute may force relocation
Bread Ahead founder Matthew Jones says difficulties renewing the bakery’s Borough Market lease have left him feeling unwelcome and frustrated with the business climate in Britain. The dispute matters because the popular family firm says relocating could be costly and put jobs at risk, while Jones says opening and running businesses abroad has been easier.
Bread Ahead has traded at Borough Market since 2013 and now has an extension until March 2028, the date the market says its lease was always due to end; no agreement has been reached beyond then. Jones says the market cited the stall’s success, customer numbers and the firm’s overseas expansion, while the market said it lacked space. Moving could cost up to £1 million and affect 83 employees; the article also notes the employer National Insurance rate rose from 13.8 to 15 per cent and the secondary threshold fell to £5,000.
In short
- Bread Ahead’s Borough Market lease runs until March 2028.
- Matthew Jones says he feels unwelcome and may leave.
- Relocation could cost £1 million and put 83 jobs at risk.
Steelman: both sides, in good faith
The strongest fair case each way — we don't pick a winner.
The case for
The market can argue that it must manage scarce space fairly and consistently, and that a successful trader’s popularity or overseas growth does not automatically entitle it to a longer lease. It may also need to weigh the needs of other traders and the character of the market while honouring the lease’s stated end date.
The case against
Bread Ahead can argue that a long-standing trader that has invested in the market and built a popular business deserves a clear, fair process and serious consideration for renewal. With relocation potentially costing £1 million and putting 83 jobs at risk, Jones’s experience may also support concern that lease uncertainty and rising employment costs make the UK a harder place to run a business.
Explained simply
Borough Market is a major food market in south London, where independent traders rent stalls or spaces to sell to the public. Bread Ahead, a bakery business founded by Matthew Jones, has traded there since 2013 and has grown to employ 83 people.
The dispute concerns how long Bread Ahead can remain at the market after its current lease ends. The market says it has no space for the business beyond March 2028, while Jones says moving could cost up to £1 million. The case also comes amid changes to employer National Insurance costs, which affect the amount businesses pay on staff wages.
The issue matters to the bakery’s workers and customers, and raises wider questions about the costs and conditions businesses face in Britain. Jones says he has found it easier to open and run businesses abroad.
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Originally published by Daily Mail as “‘What has happened to our country?’ Britain’s most successful baker who was BANNED from Borough Market says he’s tired of ‘doom and gloom’ under Labour and it’s easier to run a business abroad”.