Hungry? You will be after reading this. Today #madeinsandwell Monday is celebrating Robinson’s Bakery, a company that works hard to keep Sandwell well fed.

As its website proclaims, Robinson’s is ‘Black Country Born & Bread!’. At one time, every Black Country town had its own Robinson’s, selling freshly baked bread and cakes. However, after being taken over by Firkin in 1982 the business struggled, going into liquidation in 2015. Desert company Valencia Fine Foods, also headquartered in West Bromwich, bought a package of Firkin shops, re-employing as many of the staff as possible and rebranding under the original Robinson’s name.

The first new Robinson’s Bakery opened in West Bromwich in May 2015, followed by an Oldbury branch in August and a Wolverhampton outlet in September. Business boomed, and in August 2019 the company expanded into a purpose-built ‘cakery’ at Siddons Factory Estate on Howard Street, West Bromwich.

Owner Rob Green says, “our success is due to the product quality and diversity and our people.” As well as the regular sandwiches and sausage rolls, Robinson’s offers vegetarian, vegan and gluten-free products, and has also started exporting. All the sandwich fillings are made fresh daily in store, and the business roasts its own meats. Robinsons also supplies cakes for special occasions, including wedding cakes to suit all budgets, from £99 to £999.

With the UK currently on lockdown, Robinson’s is continuing to operate in order to support and feed key workers and the people of Sandwell, albeit with reduced capacity, offering its range of cobs, sandwiches, baguettes, hot food, cakes and snacks by delivery through Just Eat. It has also increased production of traditional meals, such as cheese and potato pie, cottage pie and corned beef hash for call-and-collect and delivery customers, and is working with Think Sandwell to help supply vulnerable people and food banks during this difficult time.

#madeinsandwell Monday is a celebration of the talent and diversity within our borough. If you’re interested in being considered for a #madeinsandwell Monday profile and having information about your organisation shared on Think Sandwell and through Twitter, read this.