Local St Neots business grateful for £15,000 crowdfunding success to bring artisan bakery and school to community

A local St Neots-based cafe and restaurant is currently celebrating after successfully raising over £15,000 through crowdfunding to build and open a new artisan bakery and baking school in the town.

Elsie May’s Electric Lounge Café & Bar, located in St Neots’ Market Square, completed it’s fundraising campaign, collecting over £17,000 from 300-plus different backers to transform it’s annexe outbuilding into an artisan micro bakery and baking school.

The Kickstarter campaign saw the café welcome generous pledges and donations from members of the general public, family, friends and more, with backers of the project receiving a range of tiered rewards and goodies on offer depending on individual pledges.

Naomi Rose, owner of Elsie May’s Electric Lounge, was extremely grateful for the support received, saying: “We can’t believe how quickly the generosity of the local community has helped us not just reach, but surpass our target goal. We’ve always wanted to open a bakery and a bakery school for the local community and the kindness shown from members of the public will help us do just that.

“Every individual that pledged, regardless of how big or small, will be part of our story and help shape the Elsie May’s Bakery for years to come. Our local community is so important to us and we want to use these funds to create a bakery that people can be proud of, right on their doorstep.”

The funds raised will be used in order to buy essential equipment and install the correct electrics and plumbing, such as mixers, sinks, ovens, extraction units, and pay for significant contracting work to make the annexe fit for purpose.
“The past 18 months has been a difficult financial period for everyone, both businesses and individuals, because of the pandemic, so we’ve been truly blown away and humbled by the support we’ve received.”

The campaign was supported by Instagram influencer Sourdough Sophia to her 112,000 followers as well The Real Bread Campaign and The National Caterers Association.

“We’ve been lucky to receive a helping hand from friends and family, our loyal customers, baking enthusiasts, local residents, as well as strangers from around the globe. It’s a wonderful reminder of what a kind and caring place the world can be when people come together for a common cause. We would like to thank every single person for their support!”

The work to build the bakery, which is already underway, is expected to be completed in the next month with a launch event due to be held upon completion for the first 50 backers of the campaign.

To find out more about the cafe and when the bakery is set to open, visit the Elsie May’s website or visit the Elsie May’s Electric Lounge social media channels.