Several of the city’s stores have either shut or been rebranded
Workers outside the Sayers factory, Norris Green, after it went into liquidation in the 00s(Image: Trinity Mirror Copyright)
A Liverpool institution has shut another city store as it continues to be erased from the streets of Merseyside. Sayers Bakery has largely disappeared from the city centre, though it still exists as a brand in the North West.
It started as a family business in Old Swan in 1912, with Fred and Lylian Sayer selling baked goods from a basement kitchen. Since then, the company has undergone several changes, including a partial rebranding as Poundbakery and subsequent ownership changes.
Sayers is now owned by Karen Wood and managed by Mark James and David Silvester. Today, Thursday, August 28, the group has announced it’s store, found at Churchill shopping centre in Aintree, has now permanently closed.
The ECHO contacted Sayers and Poundbakery on several occasions for comment but to no success. The business has however been listed as permanently closed on Google.
The signs have been taken down from the Aintree store
If you’ve grown up in the region, you’ll likely have popped into a local Sayers store through the years. It was well over a century ago that Fred and Lylian Sayer started the business on Prescot Road.
A decade later, the two moved production to County Road, Walton, before increasing demand saw Sayers move to a larger bakery in Aintree Road, Bootle, in 1925.
And many generations will also know the early 1930s saw another expansion, with Sayers moving to a purpose-built bakery in Lorenzo Drive, Norris Green, which went into liquidation and closed in the 00s.
The former Sayers bakery on Lorenzo Drive in Norris Green, Liverpool(Image: Howard H Hughes)
Sayers remained a family-run business until 1977, when it was sold to United Biscuits and later, in 1990, bought by Warburtons. Six years later, in 1996, Warburtons sold its bakers’ stores to Lyndale Foods, and the following year, the family was expanded further when the Annes Shops chain of shops was bought from Roberts Bakery in 1997.
The ECHO understands that Sayers’ main bakery is now based in Bolton, but shops still persist on Breck Road, Bootle, and the Dingle. Over the years, many across our region have loved a trip to Sayers, enjoying everything from cakes, sandwiches, soups, to other bakery products. You can see how the company has changed throughout the years here.
Staff from the Sayers shop at Williamson Square, Liverpool. L-R Kathy Fleetwood, Julie Pennington, Deborah Turner. 23rd September 1991.(Image: Mirrorpix)
This week, the ECHO delved into the archives and discovered an old Sayers advertisement featured nearly 40 years ago – a reminder of a number of treats many across the region will remember from childhood. Printed on April 30, 1987, it shows everything from that week’s specials to prices of the time and more.
In part, it reads: “Sayers has been a famous name in fresh baking for over 75 years…and you’ll find your local shop…is just around the corner. There’s such good value and quality from your local baker…freshly-baked bread, delicious cakes, hot oven-fresh pies and pastries.
A Sayers bakery ad featured in the Liverpool ECHO on April 30, 1987(Image: BRITISH NEWSPAPER ARCHIVE/LIVERPOOL ECHO)
“Yes, there’s something for the whole family at Sayers.” But one thing that stood out to us in particular was the “five variety box” featured. For 99p, customers could enjoy a box of five “mouth-watering” cakes.
An illustration depicts the variety box, with cartoon fresh cream cakes and treats. But many who were kids of the time will remember the excitement of bringing one of these boxes home.
The advertisement also includes the specials of that week, which included six white barms for 36p. Customers that week could also pick up a floury batch loaf for 34p or a cheese and onion pasty for 35p.