 | |
| Founded | 2005 [1] |
|---|---|
| Founders | Gail Mejia Tom Molnar [2] |
| Headquarters | London, England, UK |
Number of locations | 170 (as of March 2025) [3] |
| Website | gails |
Gail's is a British bakery and coffee shop chain headquartered in London, England. The first shop opened in Hampstead, London, in 2005. As of August 2024, there were 131 branches in the UK.
Gail's was founded as a wholesale bakery in Hendon, London, by Yael Mejia in the early 1990s, serving businesses in London. [4] [5] In 2003, Tom Molnar and Ran Avidan bought half the business. [5] The first Gail's cafe opened in Hampstead, London, in 2005. [6] The chain expanded with the rise of foodie culture. [6]
In 2021, all Gail's branches were within a 55-mile (90-kilometre) radius of its central bakery and kitchen in Hendon, London. [7] Gail's subsequently expanded to Altrincham, Chester, Didsbury, Knutsford, Manchester, and Wilmslow.[ citation needed ]
In 2021, Bain Capital, a private investment firm based in Boston, Massachusetts, acquired a majority stake in Gail's from Risk Capital Partners, [8] valuing Gail's at £200 million, with the entrepreneur Luke Johnson retaining a 15% stake. [9] As of August 2024, there were 131 branches in the UK. [6] That month, a petition started by a local man objected to Gail’s opening in Walthamstow Village, although other local residents welcome the chain. [6] In 2024, Gail's won the Best Coffee Shop/Café Group award at the MCA Hospitality Awards. [10]
Gail's is an upmarket coffee shop chain that offers baked products including croissants and cinnamon buns. It uses packaging and branding designed to feel "authentic" and "local", and is associated with middle-class affluence. [5] [11] Molnar said Gail's sought to open cafes in areas with "thriving neighbourhoods with plenty of families" and said the typical customer had "average or above" income. [5]
Gail's has launched various initiatives to reduce food waste, such as selling a sourdough loaf made partially from leftover bread. [12] It partnered with Neighbourly to distribute surplus food in 2023. [13]
In August 2024, Gail's attracted criticism on social media for selling their leftover "twice-baked" chocolate and almond croissants and their almond croissants for £1 more than their fresh crossiants. Gail's market their twice-baked pastries as part of their "Waste Not" range, with the objective being to combat food waste. Some users noted that almond croissants are typically made from old croissants. [11]
Luke Johnson, who oversaw Gail's expansion and sale to Bain Capital, supported Brexit and criticised the COVID-19 lockdowns and net-zero intiviatives, attracting boycotts against Gail's. [5] In the 2024 UK general election, the Liberal Democrats successfully targeted traditionally Conservative constituencies with middle-class and affluent voters who might frequent a Gail's. The Liberal Democrats used the question "Does it have a Gail's?" to identify areas where support could be won. [5]