Bakehouse24 is the Daily Echo's Trader of the week

Pete Joy owns and manages Bakehouse24, a successful bakery chain with stores in Southbourne, Lyndhurst and Ringwood.

With a five-star rating on TripAdvisor, it offers a cosy atmosphere and friendly staff.

It takes its name from the Ringwood postcode of BH24. 

Pete said: "I'd been working as a baker and wanted to return to the south coast to set up a bakery.

"It just made sense to have a café alongside this so we could showcase our products.

"Baking was my original passion and the café side of the business followed.

As well as baking, Bakehouse24 also offers baking lessons for an insight into their products. 

Pete added: "We currently run two classes.

"First is a class designed to teach the essentials in sourdough bread making and give the participants the skills and knowledge of how to produce bakery-quality bread in their own kitchen.

"The second class is short and teaches the fundamentals of making doughnuts. It's short and sweet and the attendees leave with bags full of doughnuts."

General manager Ellie Powis said: "We're really passionate about ingredients and what we're putting into our bakes.

"Probably more than 80 per cent of our day-to-day customers are regulars, so we see the same people all the time, which is great because you get to build really good relationships with them community-wise.

"It's the same at the Ringwood store, but especially around here, you're part of a community.

"It's like that old-school feeling, People go to the butchers and bakers and it's nice to be part of that.

"We would love to be able to expand the Southbourne store to maybe be able to have the hot food offering, like more of a cafe offering, as the Ringwood store has. 

"We have a really small team here and the same in Ringwood, but a lot of the bakers live locally here, so we all know each other.

"It's a close-knit group, which is lovely."

Bakehouse24 can be found at 154 Seabourne Road, Bournemouth.