Cornish Bakery names first managing director

Independent chain Cornish Bakery has announced the appointment of hospitality specialist Mat Finch as its first ever managing director.

In his new role, Finch will work alongside founder Steve Grocutt to drive the company’s stated objectives of “building a unique team culture, winning beautifully and supercharging swift growth”.

Finch has over 20 years of commercial leadership experience in the leisure, hospitality, retail and tech sectors.

He also has a track record of developing customer experiences and leading large teams, whilst driving growth and profitability.

Finch, who was previously the commercial and marketing director of Warner Leisure Hotels, had led a team of 120 people, doubled revenue, achieved more than 90% occupancy, and opened two new hotels for the group during a 12-year tenure.

Grocutt said: “At 60+ bakeries with plans to double or even triple in size, Mat Finch joins Cornish Bakery as one of the leading modern high end bakeries in the world. We continue to drive our impressive business growth through our unquestionable people-first values and our independent brand spirit.

“As our first MD, Mat will now lead our 800+ people, continuing our successful journey whilst nourishing our vital teams and customers on the way. Mat has demonstrated the ideal fit with his ability to be authentic with integrity, evidencing his highly collaborative leadership style, with a genuine passion for our people first culture.”

He added: Bakery is very clearly the new coffee shop, and Mat fully echoes my strong belief that our industry can change and create real legacy. He’ll lead the charge now with Cornish Bakery redefining what a bakery is, what it does and what it can be, every single day of the week.”