A POPULAR bakery in Christchurch has profited from a successful first year in business having opened during the coronavirus pandemic.

Patisserie Mark Bennett opened its doors in August 2020, between the first and second national lockdowns, at a prime location on the corner of Christchurch’s High Street and Fountain Roundabout.

Since then, the patisserie, the sixth branch in the Dorset bakery’s chain, has quickly found itself as one of the go-to destinations for quality baked goods in the town.

Manager Ethan Newbury said: “I have just taken over here three months ago and it had been really good.

"We opened in August last year and although it was during the pandemic, it actually went really well. We had queues around the corner.

“We were also doing deliveries which were very popular. I did the deliveries from here and sometimes I would be travelling miles to drop food off.”

During the lockdowns, staff were processing around 200 enquiries a day as well as serving customers who were able to come into the store in pairs in order to maintain social distancing rules.

Bournemouth Echo: Having been open for over a year, Patisserie Mark Bennett in Christchurch has quickly become a favourite among residents, despite the challenges of setting up during the pandemic

Having previously at the PMB on the Green branch in Ashley Cross, Ethan says there is a noticeable difference in the clientele between the two stores.

He added: “It is very business related over in Ashley Cross, there are a lot of order for offices and functions such as weddings and that kind of thing.

“But over here there are quite a lot of big events such as weddings and there is certainly more of a community aspect here.

“There are quite a lot of regular customers that come in nearly every day or even just wave as they walk past which is nice.”

The patisserie continues to draw in a large customer base with its selection of freshly basked bread, sweet treats and gourmet sandwiches.

Bournemouth Echo: Having been open for over a year, Patisserie Mark Bennett in Christchurch has quickly become a favourite among residents, despite the challenges of setting up during the pandemic

Staff at the patisserie say their popularity has certainly grown during the pandemic, and customers continue to ask for more branches to be open across Dorset and further afield.

“If you look down through the comments on our Facebook page, people are asking for us to open stores right across the area,” said Ethan.

“Some as far as London and even people from Europe and New Zealand.

“They have just upgraded the bakery in Fleetbridge to be three times the size but with the capacity as it is, they may need another one.”

Bournemouth Echo: Having been open for over a year, Patisserie Mark Bennett in Christchurch has quickly become a favourite among residents, despite the challenges of setting up during the pandemic

Having now established themselves in Christchurch, the patisserie are now looking to branch out to new customers bases, whilst also being mindful of another busy festive period in the offing.

Ethan said: “We do events such as weddings and office parties at our other stores so it would be nice to have more of that over here.

“We have got Christmas coming up which is extremely popular.

“Last year during the lockdown it was mental. We had around 200 orders plus people coming in, so I am looking forward to that.”