Derbyshire couple find permanent home for their new artisan bakery in grand old building

Dave and Sarah Sargent are currently refurbishing a prestigious 1920s building in Matlock town centre which will become the permanent home of their artisan bakery, Sourdough Dave.

The couple launched the business in February 2022, baking sourdough bread from the kitchen in their Matlock home during lockdown.

Ex-chef Dave, 41, who has worked with Raymond Blanc and Marco Pierre White, was swamped with orders – going from 25 loaves in the first week to 170 in week three – and quit his job in food product development to focus on his love of baking bread.

To cope with demand the pair later parked a second-hand shopping container at their home, which unfortunately breached planning regulations and sparked the search for more permanent premises.

Luckily Haydn Stanley, owner of the 1920s building and former furniture shop they settled on did not want the prestigious structure being taken up by a giant fastfood chain and agreed to sell to Dave and Sarah.

However after buying the couple’s lenders reduced their loan, leaving them to fund the fitting of the bakery inside. They have now launched a crowdfunding page to help bridge the gap in their set-up cash.

Speaking about the task ahead, Sarah said: “If we don’t get it done in a certain amount of time we’re going to end up in more and more debt and there might come a point where we can’t sustain it and we’ll probably fail. That’s a scary thought.

"It’s very daunting, yet very exciting. Both me and Dave really love to think outside the box but its scary and we’re working really hard. It’s overwhelming the amount of help we’ve had.

"The amount of friends offering their physical help, helping me shout about our bakery, the donations already and the amount of people who love our bread and tell other people about our bread.

"So many people have said what an amazing thing this will be for the community and it’s what Matlock has needed for such a long time, so it’s really exciting.”

Sourdough Dave – now selling 500 loaves a week – started producing sourdough loaves for family and friends during Covid lockdown when yeast was scarce.

However since launching the business the couple’s bread has won several awards, including Authentic Sourdough with Added Ingredients at the World Bread Awards in 2022.

When finished, Sarah and Dave envisage their newly-fitted premises at the old Haydn Stanley building as “upmarket” with a farm shop and a bakery and bread shop.

A room in the back has been set aside for private dining or functions, while further down the road the pair plan to make accommodation above the bakery available for budding sourdough bakers on weekend courses.

Anyone wanting to contribute to the crowdfunding campaign can do so HERE.