Update

Firstly, we would like to sincerely apologise to all our beloved customers, suppliers, and supporters for our delay in updating you all regarding what has been happening over the last several months. We completely understand that the lack of up to date communication from us may have left some of you questioning what was going on behind the scenes.

We are aware, with hindsight, that the choice we made to raise our GoFundMe total may have appeared to be a questionable one, and for this, we are truly sorry. By the time we made this decision, the target we originally reached had been exhausted paying bills and suppliers. We were extremely shocked and dismayed, to discover that the business interruption aspect of our company insurance policy did not, in fact cover this enforced closure, and our staff had not been paid since July. We were, by that point, literally running on empty.

We have faced multiple challenges during this process, which have resulted in an enormous amount of stress and confusion, staff loss and illness, and which has also exacerbated pre-existing health conditions of the remaining staff members. Therefore, we have been unable to accurately convey the magnitude of the situation.

The following is an outline of what the team at Daily Bread have been up against.

When we initially filed our 23/24 accounts, we were informed that we had made an error. We consulted with our accountants, and swiftly moved to correct this, re-filing said accounts within the specified time frame. Having done this, we were informed by Companies House that these amended accounts had been received, were complete and correct, and that no further action from ourselves was necessary.

We were then extremely surprised, following this, to learn we had been issued a notice of suspension. Our accountant proceeded to raise a stop on this, as we had, indeed, filed our accounts correctly. At this point, we contacted Companies House again, and were, again, verbally reassured that our corrected accounts had been received, that we need not worry, and that the aforementioned issue would be resolved once our accounts were processed.

Following this, we received a letter from Companies House notifying us that we were due to be dissolved unless we made contact to resolve the issue. However, when we contacted the relevant department to query this, we were informed that we had, in fact, already been dissolved.

As we are sure you can imagine, having followed instructions given to us by Companies House, and been given reassurance that all was in order, this news came as a complete shock, and was highly distressing for the team.

We then enquired how we could resolve this. We were informed by Companies House, that we could apply for restoration, and reassured, again, that the process would be straightforward. By this point, we were completely exasperated, and extremely confused, and immediately on receipt of advice from Co-operatives UK, we ceased trading.

We then sought legal advice, and applied for the Bona Vacancia. Upon application for the Bona Vacancia, we were informed, that we would be sent a pro visionary document via email by the following week, which would enable us to continue with the restoration process. This did not happen. When the Bona Vacancia did in fact finally arrive, almost two months later, we were elated.

At this point, having not been able to trade, considering having lost business income estimated at approximately £200,000, access to the finances necessary to pay for the restoration process were not available. We had planned to access our V.A.T return to facilitate this, but shortly after applying for our return, our business bank account was closed, rendering us unable to do so.

Daily Bread Cambridge Ltd was so much more than a shop. The value we provided for our staff, our customers, local businesses, our community, and indeed, our planet, were wide reaching. From the obvious benefits of supplying our customers with wholesome, organic, fairly traded and ethical food, personal care products and supplements, our reach went so much further than that. Below is a non extensive list of some of that value.

* We provided seasonal fruit, vegetables, and herb plants from The Prospects Trust, supporting a local organic farm and all those who work there.

* The sale of our honey, supported local bee keepers doing invaluable work to protect and maintain our wild bee population

* We supported The Fitzwilliam Museum with the sale of their greetings cards

* We provided a wonderful refill station for household and cleaning supplies, saving thousands upon thousands of plastic bottles going into landfill.

* Held monthly sold out needle felting workshops in our cafe run by local artist The Lady Moth, who used crafting to promote creativity and connection in the community

* Provided a space for local grass roots group Transitions to install their planters to promote growing vegetables and herbs/healthier living practices

* Hosted a monthly writing group in our cafe providing a quiet space for creativity to flourish

* Provided cafe space for local driving schools to prep learners prior to lessons/tests

* Provided volunteer opportunities to students from Foundation Learning during work skills courses

* Provided the opportunity for several volunteers with learning difficulties, supporting them with community, confidence, companionship and life skills. We were also supported by volunteers who gave their time simply because they loved our shop and our ethos.

* We used Connect Cambridge to ensure zero emissions for our bread deliveries

* Supported North Cambridge Community Partnership to enable them to hold events for families and young people in the local community

* Supported numerous elderly customers who are not able to shop online, as well as providing a fully accessible environment for wheelchair users

* We were a registered Safe Space for members of the community living with mental health conditions, or who are on the Neurodiverse spectrum

As we write this, we no longer have a business premises. After speaking with the property management company, and explaining our predicament, they appeared to be understanding. They then proceeded to instruct bailiffs to lock us out with no formal notice. They have said that we will be allowed in for 30 minutes to collect our papers and personal belongings. They have yet to do this despite several weeks having gone by. We understand, that our landlord potentially is, as we are, incredibly frustrated with this situation and had clearly reached their wits end.

We understand how hugely frustrating it is for you not to be able to access your go-to favourite food items and store cupboard staples. It weighs heavy on our hearts too. So, with this in mind, we have spoken with Daily Bread Northampton, who we are happy to share, have now agreed to deliver to Cambridgeshire so you shall be able to enjoy your special muesli mixes and all your favourite healthy treats again!

You can find them @ the link below

Https://dailybread.co.uk/

Cambridge Organic offer local deliveries of seasonal veg boxes and store cupboard staples.

Find them here -

Https://cambridgeorganic.co.uk/

Arjuna Wholefoods on Mill Road, Cambridge, also stock some of the same, or similar items to those we did, and deliver locally.

Here is the link to their website

Https://www.arjunawholefoods.co.uk/

And finally, for those of you who are closer to Ely, or would like to venture a little further afield, Prospects Trust who supplied our spinach, chard, salad leaves and excellent herb and tomato plants can be found here

Https://prospectstrust.org.uk/

We very much hope that the above will be useful for you.

We are so very grateful to all our wonderfully loyal customers, dedicated suppliers, and the great businesses we have worked with, many of whom have been with us from the beginning. The team would like to share a heartfelt thank you to each and every one of you that have supported Daily Bread Cambridge Ltd throughout our journey, and particularly through these recent most challenging times.

Our team went above and beyond to explore every option available to us, and fight to save a dearly loved Cambridge institution, that has been such an invaluable resource for our local community over the last 30 years. We are still pursuing restoration. Sadly, at this point it is now with the intention of going into liquidation with the view that this route will ensure we are able to reduce further losses wherever possible. We are deeply saddened that it has come to this.

Please continue to fight the good fight, and support local and independent businesses if you are able to. They need you now more than ever. We will miss you. We will miss finding fabulous new products to share, our chats in the shop and giggles at the counter putting the world to rights; but who knows? Perhaps some of our paths may cross again in the future somewhere.

For now, we are taking a much needed breath.

Sending heartfelt wishes for a healthy, happy, joyful, abundant and ethical future to you all.

With much love,

Team Daily Bread

Daily Bread Co-operative Cambridge is an award-winning 100% vegetarian wholefood shop promoting an ethical lifestyle through our working practices and the products we sell.

We are dedicated to providing ethically-sourced products at a fair price, avoiding the exploitation of others and our natural world. We offer a wide variety of items including as many locally-supplied, organic, gluten-free, and vegan products as possible.

This enables us as a co-operative to continue in our mission to be fair, caring, and sustainable.