The best bakery in the Scottish Borders has got bigger

Murray Orr

Twelve Triangles has sprinkled its floury magic dust over the Scottish Borders town of Melrose.

They’ve just opened their second branch, with a prominent cafe, shop and bakery on Market Square, and some might say it’s their most appealing yet.

We asked Emily Cuddeford - who owns the business and its seven Edinburgh branches, with her friend, Rachel Morgan - to tell us more.

Why did you need a second Melrose branch?

Within the first year of little Melrose being open we noticed that people seemed to need more space.

What was the new property previously?

The shop was a gallery and, before that, a shoe shop. Melrose’s community is exceptionally well connected to the history of their town and takes pride in the independent shops. We wanted to honour this and be sympathetic to the Scottish Borders and its past industries. We sourced most furniture from local antique dealers and found a beautiful old draper’s table to have as our front pastry counter as a nod to the heritage of the mills. A large old oak refectory table in the window helps to build a communal community and a homely space. In the family room we have a long pew style bench as a nod to Melrose’s disused railway station. The biggest job was getting the necessary planning consent to put a working kitchen in the basement as we had to upgrade the plumbing and power.

We fell in love with this shop because of its beautiful large arched windows. These bring the most fantastic light in, but we also wanted to be aware of how grey Scotland can be in the winter so we painted the whole shop a wonderful deep ochre (Galette from Little Green Paint). We worked with local joiners to build gallow shelving for our bread and retail selection. We still have one more room downstairs to renovate, which will become a reading room. It has the original antique stove/cooker in it and we want to preserve this.

Murray Orr

Why was it important to be family-friendly?

Rachel and I both have children, and we truly appreciate being able to go somewhere where you’re welcomed. We’ve all had moments of stress while hoping for sticky fingers not to touch or break anything. I also found when my son was very young, I was often exhausted and felt quite alone and places that felt child-friendly were a lifeline. The chance to have a coffee in a space where there was something for your child to play with meant the world. To have the opportunity to offer this to other families feels like a repayment in kind to the people who helped me along the way.

How does it feel for the brand to be turning ten?

It has been a monumental few years. There were points where it felt like we had gone too far, with the book launch, birthday, opening and managing the new Melrose site, as well as opening a new savoury kitchen site. But we got through it, and have our incredible team to thank for that. Only now are we getting a chance to look at where we have come from to where we are now. We can’t ever say thank you enough to everyone who has been on this journey with us - staff, customers and suppliers.

The look is quite different from your Edinburgh branches, is that intentional?

Yes, as we have turned 10 we have been focusing on why we’re doing this. We have grown up, both as women with families but also in our confidence. The last two years writing Kitchen Table and focusing on the bakery has helped us solidify our love of beautifully made staples, like a beautiful crusty baguette or that perfect almond croissant. The new Melrose site is the first shop we’ve been able to create alongside our new branding. We wanted the space to feel classic, comforting and homely. We plan to be taking this feel into our other shops over the next year or so.

From a more practical standpoint it’s a considerably larger space, which has enabled us to play with our offerings. That included creating a lovely curated retail range for kitchen essentials alongside our own pantry staples of jam, granola and coffee, more seating and having a welcoming space for children and families in the back, with a play kitchen and books. The kitchen space downstairs is also quite generous which means we can grow and do baking and food preparation that’s specific to Melrose.

Any signature dishes?

Currently, pistachio and walnut granola with natural yoghurt and seasonal compote, sourdough cheese toasties and house baked beans with sourdough toast, cultured butter and Scottish cheddar. Little Melrose, the original site on the High Street, is staying open as the main spot for a loaf or a coffee to take away.

Murray Orr

What have your retail bestsellers been?

Croissant biscotti and small batch seasonal jams.

How does working in the Melrose cafe compare to Edinburgh?

All our shops focus on community but in Melrose you can really see and feel this, the staff are fantastic and loved by the customers (one of the complaints of the new site in the first week was it was too busy so they couldn’t speak to the staff so much). We have a dedicated corkboard wall for all the regulars’ coffee and bread loyalty cards - impressively, the staff never need to ask someone's name. In Melrose, sales wise we sell the most scones, caramel shortbread and frangipane bars.

Any other businesses in the area that you can recommend?

Melrose is still dominated by independent businesses. Purple Plum, the fruit and veg shop, is fantastic, and Martin Baird the butchers is where we source our ham for sandwiches, there is a local bookshop, and a wonderful florist (she does our flowers in the shop for us weekly), a deli as well as a speciality wine shop. The area hasn’t changed a huge amount since we moved in, it has always been a very strong community which takes pride in supporting its local businesses. We are lucky to have become part of this.

What's next?

I would like to say a rest, but realistically we will think of something new and get excited and run away with ourselves.

www.twelvetriangles.co.uk

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