Bakers Delight Lavington owner Belinda Daggett finishes up after 25 years

October 25 marked the break maker's last day in charge of Bakers Delight at Lavington Square after almost 25 years in the business.

What started as a part-time job after she moved to Albury from Cobram for university in 1999 quickly became her passion.

Mrs Daggett said she thrived in the store, which was initially located opposite Big W, from day one.

Just three years later, she would become Australia's youngest Bakers Delight franchisee at just 22.

"The bosses at the time asked me why I was going to uni. I told them I wanted a high paying job and they said I could earn lots of money owning a Bakers Delight," she said.

"They offered me a management traineeship, because I was going to work more than I was going to uni. I decided to defer uni and take a year off, and I never wanted to go back.

"After I did my traineeship, they put up the money initially for me to purchase the store. My mum and dad moved over and we bought the bakery in 2002 and we've never looked back from there."

Bakers Delight Lavington moved to its current location, near Woolworths, in 2005, after a major refurbishment of the shopping complex.

"It was the best thing we ever did. The customers are in the right location right in front of the supermarket," she said.

"One of the things that really stands out to me is the fact a lot of the customers I've had have been with us the whole time. They've watched me start with Bakers Delight and have continued to shop there.

"I was always very determined and very driven. I never really said no.

"If someone came to me and asked if I could cater for an event like the Ovens and Murray grand final, we would always make it work.

"Someone said to me once 'you don't walk it in a business, you run a business.' You couldn't just be focused on one area, you had to be all over it, and you had to be able to get in there and be willing to do the hard work."

Mrs Daggett revealed in the past 25 years, the store had served about 5.5 million customers and made more than 3 million loaves of bread, 165,000 Christmas tarts, and approximately 400,000 Hot Cross Buns on Easter Thursdays alone.

"The highlight for me was being part of the community for so long. I moved over from Cobram to go to uni over here, but I adopted Lavington as my community," she said.

"It's always been a family business.

"My dad has always been part of it and he retired last year. My husband, Aaron, has worked in there for the past eight or so years and my son, Harry, has worked there the past three years.

"We actually had a day last week before we closed where my youngest son Jimmy came in and we all spent the day there together.

"My brother did his apprenticeship with us back in 2002 and he was with us for probably 10 years as well."

Mrs Daggett said she enjoyed the flexibility of the business and often jumped between baking and sales.

"I could have the best of both worlds," she said.

"I'd usually go in at 4am and slice bread and then I'd be home at 7am to get the kids to school, and then I'd come back at 9am, do school hours and then go home.

"I really loved to see kids finish their apprenticeships in baking and become qualified bakers. We've been very lucky over the past 10 years where we've been able to keep staff.

"We've got a number of sales girls that have been with us for many years. My main sales girl has been with me for 17 years and another two have been with me since they were 14.

"A family from Sydney has bought it and they've been in business before, so it's in really good hands. They've kept all of the staff on, so it won't be a massive change."

Mrs Daggett paid tribute to her many loyal customers and staff for their support and said she looked forward to a well-earned break.

"We wouldn't have the business without them. I think people forget that these businesses don't run without customers," she said.

"We're super proud of the fact that we really thrived in the pandemic. We've had times where things have been tough, but the community has always supported us.

"Chris and Angela Quirk from Baker's Delight over at the Birallee (shopping centre) in Wodonga and John and Jodie House from Baker's Delight in Albury have also been a great support to us.

"My husband has been my biggest supporter. I couldn't have done it without him."

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