I’m Ben Reade, one of four Directors at Company Bakery. The story of how we got here isn’t a straight line. More of a winding journey that took shape through a love of food, community, and curiosity.

Company Bakery really started out of necessity and need. Back when I was running Edinburgh Food Studio, we were baking bread there, and people kept asking if they could buy it. Around the same time, friends and fellow food people - Duncan and Amy from Smith & Gertrude, and the team at LoveCrumbs - also needed a reliable bread supplier. So we set out to cross that bridge. That’s how Company Bakery began.

My background has always been a bit of a blend between the science and craft of food. Food nerdery! Before Company, I spent time as Head of R&D at the Nordic Food Lab, exploring the edges of what food could be. That work took me into all sorts of fascinating territory - fermentation, indigenous food systems, sensory experiences - and exposed me to food culture at every level.

Before that, I studied at the University of Gastronomic Sciences in Italy, which was founded by Carlo Petrini of the Slow Food movement. It was an incredible bit of good fortune that took me there, but it completely changed how I think about food. It shifted me from being just a cook to someone deeply curious about the “why” behind what we eat. Touching everything from sociology and tourism to natural sciences and microbiology. Enology, ethnobotany, agriculture. My thesis was on fermentation, and that really cemented my fascination with it. The most fascinating foods there are fermented - salamis, cheese. The good gear! That chemistry and biology, the ecology of it all, still drives how I think about food today.

And before that, I worked my way through kitchens. Susie’s Kitchen in Edinburgh (a bit of a hippy vegetarian spot), Aubergine in London (famously brutal - we called it the Battle of the Somme of kitchens), River Cottage, and Ballymaloe. I’ve been fascinatingly lucky to work alongside genuine legends along the way.

Company Bakery really came from seeing a need and realising we could meet it. We didn’t sit down and write a grand business plan. It was more organic than that. We were already baking bread people wanted, and friends, peers, fellow chefs or restaurateurs, needed a quality supply. It grew from those early connections and a shared belief that we could do it better, with integrity.

The journey has been about following curiosity and saying yes to opportunities that align with values. From working in fine dining to food research and education, I’ve always been drawn to the parts of food that connect people - culture, science, sustainability, taste. Company Bakery sits right at that intersection.

Proudest career moment? Honestly, Company Bakery itself. It started out as a bit of a side hustle, and now it’s something we’re all hugely proud of. No one person owns it - it’s ours, collectively. It’s become this self-sustaining, living thing that supports people, brings joy, and makes beautiful bread. It feels like our crowning achievement.

We’re driven by loyalty to quality in ways that might not always be visible to the customer. Every decision we make, from the grain we source to how we bake and deliver, is anchored in integrity. Our team’s ethos is simple: if it’s worth doing, it’s worth doing properly.

We’re also adaptable. “We can also do this for you” has become a bit of a calling card. That level of service and reliability is rare, and it’s part of what keeps our relationships strong. Getting an amazing product to people, on time, every time, is what sets us apart.

Integrity and consistency. It’s easy to talk about quality, but maintaining it every single day, through growth and change, is something else entirely. We never cut corners. And we’ve built the business on relationships - with suppliers, customers, and each other. That kind of trust is the backbone of Company Bakery.

I didn’t make the call to bring Rapscallion into the bakery, even though we’ve known each other for years and I took a chance on Rapscallion in its early days all those years ago at Edinburgh Food Studio. But honestly, I’d have been shocked if it wasn’t at Company Bakery. We’ve always worked with people we know and respect and peers who share our values. Rapscallion grew up alongside us, and that sense of shared ethos runs deep.

You use real ingredients, you care about health, and you don’t compromise on flavour. Just the fact you have a Cranachan soft drink - that’s just fucking delicious. It’s clever, it’s grounded, and above all, it tastes good. That’s what matters.
The truth is I’m a really thirsty person. I drink a lot. Less of a citrus guy, more a raspberry guy. I’d have Cranachan alongside one of our new cardamon buns!

I’m excited about my house in the country, my garden, my kids. That’s the good stuff.

Of course, I’m also excited about what’s happening at the bakery. We’ve got some big ideas in the distance, but our main focus right now is scaling well. Managing growth without losing what makes us us. It’s exciting to see more people coming to us for good bread and trusting us to deliver.

We’re learning as we go, defining who we are more clearly so we can make better decisions. For me, it’s a whole new experience - I’ve never had a job in a formal environment before, and now Company Bakery is becoming a place where structure matters and is necessary. It’s a huge learning curve, but a good one. Everyone brings what they can to the table, and that’s how we grow.