News

Pop-up Post Office hosted in Bakers & Larners of Holt

Bakers & Larners of Holt is delighted to play host to a ‘pop-up’ Post Office after the only Post Office in Holt was destroyed by fire on Saturday 20 June.

CT Baker Group has worked closely with colleagues from Post Office Ltd following the devastating fire at Budgens of Holt on Saturday 20 June which destroyed the store and resulted in the temporary loss of the only Post Office service in the market town.

Two pop-up Post Office counters are now situated on the ground floor in the menswear department of our store.  The service is being run by CT Baker Budgens of Holt’s existing Post Office staff who will be familiar to many of its regular customers.

The service will include mail services, withdrawals, deposits and payments, bill payments and travel insurance referral service.  Further services will be available at Post Offices in nearby Sheringham and Cromer.  Customers are currently being signposted to High Kelling Post Office which is located close to Holt Medical Practice. Information on branch services can be found at www.postoffice.co.uk/branch-finder

Jane Gurney-Read, Managing Director for CT Baker Group, said: “I have been acutely aware that many people have been rightly concerned at the loss of the only Post Office in Holt, and I am pleased that following positive discussions with Post Office Ltd, we have been able to reinstate the service very quickly.  Our Post Office staff are looking forward to serving their customers again, and providing a vital service to our local community from within Bakers & Larners of Holt.”

Opening hours for the Post Office service will be 9.30am – 5pm, Monday – Saturday.  Car parking is available at Bakers & Larners of Holt and is currently free of charge.

Customer wins £250 in our anniversary golden giveaway 

A Bakers & Larners of Holt customer is celebrating after winning a £250 gift card as part of our ‘golden giveaway’.

Mr Barry Williams, who regularly visits our award-winning from his home near Fakenham, popped in to pick up provisions from the food hall.

Mr Williams was presented his golden envelope from sales assistant Nettie (pictured) on Wednesday 5 February.

The golden giveaway was launched in January to say thank you to our customers during our 250^th anniversary of trading in Holt.

During each month of our anniversary year one lucky customer will receive a gold envelope containing a £250 gift card to spend in store. 70 customers will also win gift card worth £25.

Treats in store for customers as we mark our anniversary year

2020 is shaping up to be a very special year for Bakers & Larners of Holt and we are looking to get our 250^th anniversary of trading in Holt underway with a golden giveaway!

To mark reaching our remarkable milestone, we will have plenty of surprises in store for our customers.

During each month of our anniversary year, you could be in for a treat when you pay for your goods at any of the till points in the store.  Lucky customers will be given a voucher that will be printed at random following their purchase.  The voucher can be exchanged for an envelope that will contain a gift card.

One lucky customer per month will be able to exchange their voucher for a gold envelope containing a £250 gift card to spend in store.  During the year, 70 customers will receive a voucher to exchange for silver envelopes containing a gift card worth up to £25 to spend in store.

We offer a fantastic range of departments from ladies and menswear, home furnishings, a garden centre, pet care, DIY to our award-winning food hall where locally sourced produce is a key feature of the delicatessen.  And no visit to the store is complete without time spent in the vastly-stocked fine wine and spirits department which stands proudly above a 17^th century wine cellar.  Customers will be able to spend their gift cards in any one of these departments.

Jane Gurney-Read, Acting Managing Director of the CT Baker Group, said: “I am immensely proud to be a part of Bakers & Larners’ celebrations to mark the 250^th anniversary of our unique store.

“Our customers are absolutely at the heart of everything we do, so I am delighted that we are able to give something back to say thank you for their enduring support and loyalty.  My team and I are looking forward to welcoming customers to the store and sharing our excitement at reaching such a remarkable milestone.”

Patrick Sewell helps run Bakers & Larners’ award-winning Wine Department, he added: “It’s an exciting year for the team and we’re looking forward to welcoming customers to the department where we are proud of the exceptional range we offer from locally produced gins to wines perfect for that special occasion.”

Bakers & Larners Department Store forms part of the diverse CT Baker Group which also incorporates CT Baker Builders Merchants in Holt, Aylsham, North Walsham and Stalham and Budgens of Holt and Aylsham stores, all of whom will be joining in the celebrations.  Customers can expect lots of treats, special offers and events throughout the year as the entire Group celebrates the 250th anniversary.

It has also been recently announced that the CT Baker Group will be supporting East Anglia’s Children Hospices (EACH) during its milestone year with activities to raise money planned for the year-long celebration.

EACH to benefit from CT Baker Group’s celebratory fundraising pledge

We are delighted to announce that CT Baker Group will be supporting Each Anglia’s Children Hospices (EACH) in 2020 to mark the 250^th anniversary of the family-led business. 

CT Baker Group was established in 1770 and members of the Baker family have been working in and leading the company ever since. To mark the major milestone, we are planning a bumper year of fundraising and hope to raise £25,000 for EACH. 

Staff have organised fundraising activities to take place throughout the anniversary year, and a special commemorative range of gifts will be available for customers to purchase in store and online; a percentage of all sales will be donated to EACH. 

Tina Burdett, EACH West Norfolk Regional Fundraiser, said: “This is such a fantastic milestone for CT Baker Group. It’s inspiring to see the business still very much in the family after all this time and going from strength to strength. We’re proud and honoured to be chosen as the beneficiary of their celebratory fundraising pledge. I can’t wait to see what kinds of fundraising events and activities they come up with. I’ve already heard there will be a range of special 250^th anniversary products including a specialist gin, teddy bear, jute bag and more!” 

Jane Gurney-Read, Acting Managing Director of the CT Baker Group, said: “To reach our 250-year anniversary of trading in, and being a part of the community in Norfolk is a remarkable achievement and we wanted to do something to mark it that would make a positive difference. 

“Staff from across the Group have chosen EACH as the charity they want to support to help local children and their families; we’re aiming to raise £25,000 with plenty of fundraising activities taking place throughout the year. 

“We’re looking forward to getting our customers involved, too, there will be plenty of opportunities to purchase gifts from a very exciting range of commemorative products where donations from all items sold will be made to EACH.” 

An independent, family-run business, award-winning Bakers & Larners of Holt has been a mainstay in the centre of the Georgian town since 1770.   250 years on, and the exceptional department store has seen four centuries, nine monarchs and stands as one of the oldest retailers in East Anglia and one of the few in the country to remain under the ownership and control of the founding family. Its Board is represented by the eighth and ninth generation of the Baker family. 

Bakers & Larners department store forms part of the diverse CT Baker Group which also incorporates CT Baker Builders’ Merchants in Holt, Aylsham, North Walsham and Stalham, and Budgens of Holt and Aylsham stores.  The Group employs more than 275 people across those sites.  For more information about Bakers & Larners and the store’s history, visit www.bakersandlarners.co.uk/about-us. 

EACH currently offers care to 124 children and young people with life-threatening conditions in Norfolk, and support to 174 family members, as well as hundreds more across the rest of the region.

If you wish to donate to our campaign to raise money for EACH, you can do so online.