For 38 years, The Cake Shop specialised in hand-crafted, premium cakes for families, business, and special occasions in the Covered Market.
However, in May 2024, the company left its iconic location due to Oxford City Council’s restrictions on traffic and implementation of Zero Emission zones, as well as high rent and structural issues. These regulations made the city-centre bakery difficult to operate from.
After their closing, the company moved to Witney and merged with The Heritage Bakery, leaving behind a long history of milestones in Oxford.
Throughout its history, the company not only contributed to the memories, celebrations of customers, but received a visit from King Charles and Queen Camilla in 2017 and participated in BBC’s reality show Strictly Come Dancing.
Heather Jaschinski, general manager and head of sales of the Cake Shop said, “leaving the Covered Market was a difficult decision. It had been such an important part of our history, but we needed to reassess the business and find a model that would allow us to continue and grow.
“Our time in Witney gave us the opportunity to do that, but Oxford has always felt like home. Given that our sister company, The Heritage Bakery is moving away from retail and focusing on the wholesale and events side of the business, it allows us to move back.”
On October 31, amid preparations of the Cake Shop to return to Oxford, the sister company permanently closed its doors in Witney, ending its two-year chapter in the town.
The Cake Shop will host its grand opening and ribbon-cutting ceremony with the Lord Mayor on 14 November at 3 Golden Cross, Oxford, not far from where they started in 1986.
“We’re really excited about this next chapter for The Cake Shop and look forward to sharing our story and welcoming everyone back to our new home in Oxford,” Jaschinski said.