Much loved bakery with 13 stores to close for good after 120 years

Oddie’s bakery was first opened by William Henry Oddie in 1905 (Picture: MediaWorldImages / Alamy Stock Photo)

A family-run bakery will close all of its stores after 120 years in business.

Oddie’s has 13 shops across the east of Lancashire, including Nelson, a town of 33,000 where it’s based.

Its freshly baked bread and pies are so renowned, the then-Prince Charles popped by for its 100th anniversary in 2005.

Even as it expanded to Burnley and Colne, the business remained in the hands of the Oddie family for four generations. But that has now all changed.

A post on their website said: ‘After 120 years we are closing our doors.

‘The last day of trading will be Saturday 11th January. We have loved being part of your lives.’

More than 100 people will lose their jobs.

In November, Director Lara Oddie said: ‘Over the decades, it has withstood two world wars and their food scarcity, the Great Depression, the fall of Lancashire’s cotton industry, the rise of powerful supermarkets, and even the Covid pandemic, which forced us to adapt our entire operating model.

Charles, then-Prince of Wales, trying a ‘Sad Cake’ at Oddie’s main store in Nelson in 2005 (Picture: Phil Noble/PA)

‘With an energy crisis quadrupling costs and footfall declining on the high streets, the Oddie family decided it was time to sell.

‘Sadly, an eleventh-hour withdrawal by the buyer has left us with no choice but to consider closure.

‘As a family firm, we have always seen ourselves as part of the local community fabric, making this a heartbreaking situation for us, our devoted staff, and the loyal customers in Burnley and Pendle who have cherished our unique products.’

Here’s the full list of Oddie’s stores that are going to close:

4 Brownside Road, Burnley, BB10 3JU 72 Coal Clough Lane, Burnley, BB11 4NW 252 Colne Road, Burnley, BB10 1DZ Kestrel Court, Network 65 Business Park, Burnley, BB10 3JU 320 Padiham Road, Burnley, BB12 6ST 38 St James Street, Burnley, BB11 1NQ 62 The Mall, Burnley BB11 1BA 10 Market Street, Colne, BB8 0HR 10 Skipton Road, Foulridge, Colne, BB8 7PQ 129 Scotland Road, Nelson, BB9 7XR 325 Leeds Road, Nelson, BB9 8RW 92 Burnley Road, Padiham, BB12 8QN 5 Bond Street, Todmorden, OL14 5QB

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