Wendy and Phil Richardson celebrated their 25th wedding anniversary in a unique fashion – by launching their own micro-bakery.
Based in Findhorn, their start-up Love That Loaf was inspired by the couple’s passion for organic food.
“It is important for us [to be] part of a sustainable and ethical circular economy,” Wendy tells me.
“Our local shop The Phoenix had lost their baker and needed to find a good artisan baker to fill the void.
“We resisted at first, but then we realised that it would be the perfect business for us to step into.
“A micro-bakery is a great way to support regenerative farming, reduce food miles and offer people a choice from ultra-processed so called ‘bread’ to delicious, slow fermented and nutritious bread, which is healthy for the land, farmer and nature.”
So how did they get here?
From working in dentistry and admin to running a Findhorn micro-bakery
Phil used to be a dentist.
However, he has been a passionate baker since 1986 and toyed with the idea of starting a micro-bakery several years ago, but “didn’t have the right circumstances.”
Wendy, a Feldenkrais practitioner, has a background in the arts. The 58-year-old was in an admin role prior to the launch of Love That Loaf.
She said: “I wanted a change from sitting at a desk all day.
“Bread is an ancient food staple which has been debased over the years through industrialisation.
“We enjoy being part of the community of micro bakeries and The Real Bread campaign, restoring this delicious food staple back to its time honoured place in our diet.
“It is a simple but technical process with just three ingredients – flour, water and salt – and feels like a real co-creative adventure with nature.”
The couple also ran a hospitality business together “some years ago” in Italy.
Celebrating their 25th wedding anniversary in style with the launch of Love That Loaf
Love That Loaf was set up in just six weeks (from decision to go-ahead), as it was urgently needed by The Phoenix Shop.
“Inadvertently we ended up launching on our 25th wedding anniversary!” adds Wendy.
It was launched on August 15, 2023, and is primarily run by Wendy and Phil along with some volunteers. Their son takes charge of the IT side of the business.
The 14 products currently on offer, and how you can get your hands on them
The business currently has 14 products available.
They include:
- Slowly fermented sourdough, baked in a tin or a classic crusty freeform, or with toasted seeds.
- Dark and Delicious, a 65% wholegrain.
- 100% dark wholemeal sourdough rye breads, some with fruit and seeds, and some with bread spices.
- A rustic French-style baguette.
- Soft rolls.
- Sweet brioche, including orange and cardamom and cinnamon buns.
- Fireside Fruit Tea Loaf, which incorporates raisins, candied orange and mixed spice.
- A Brazilian cheese bread, Pão De Queijo, which is chewy and cheesy and made with tapioca flour but not yeasted.
“For Phil it [his favourite] has to be his classic sourdough, but really he loves of all them,” says Wendy.
“I can’t eat wheat flour, so it has to be The Rye Smile. It’s a soft wholesome loaf with traditional Bavarian bread spices, which is amazing toasted and lifts whatever topping you have with it. Even if it is just butter.
“Or The Wild One, a 100% dark rye with plums, fennel and coriander. [It has] a deep complex flavour that is almost like a fruit cake.”
The Findhorn micro-bakery owners deliver their stock to The Phoenix Shop daily (excluding Sundays), as well as The Re:Store in Lossiemouth on Wednesdays, and Forres Health Foods and The Pantry (Forres) on Wednesdays and Fridays.
Wendy adds: “The Phoenix Café and Torta serve our classic sourdough and baguettes in their lovely cafes.”
As of last Friday (July 19), Logie Steading Farm and Garden Shop started stocking bread from Love That Loaf, too.
Wendy and Phil hope to ‘make more bread’ and expand their audience
Wendy and Phil use flour from Scotland The Bread and Shipton Mill, while their other ingredients are supplied by Sussex Wholefoods and Suma Wholefoods.
They spend roughly six-to-seven hours a day preparing orders, six days a week.
Since launching Love That Loaf less than a year ago, Wendy shared what the highlights have been so far.
“We love the appreciation we receive for our bread and seeing happy, satisfied customers,” she said.
“I love being part of a healthy circular economy that supports everyone in the chain.
Looking ahead, she went on to say they plan to “make more bread”.
“We would like to set up some buying groups a bit further a field to make our bread more available to a wider audience.”
For more information or purchases, visit the business’ website, lovethatloaf.co.uk.
Conversation