The Bakerman bakery reopens in Clark's yard, Darlington

After months of building work, the artisan bakers Bakerman reopened in Clark's yard last Wednesday (July 23).

(Image: BAKERMAN) The newly obtained building is being used as the storefront, while the old site has been converted into purely a bakery and training facility.

Owner, Dan Booth, 39, told the Echo he has sold out everyday since the reopening.

He said: "It’s been crazily busy since we opened. It’s gone really well, it’s great to have more space, more equipment, and staff.

"One of the main reasons for getting the extra space was to have a pastry section, so now we’ve got a pastry sheet and we’re doing a whole new range of croissants and things like that."

With access to more space, Bakerman has upped its output - baking dozens more sourdough loaves, pastries, and sweet treats each day.

(Image: BAKERMAN) A new lunch menu was also launched, featuring toasties and the new 'pizzacaccia' - a mash-up of pizza and focaccia.

(Image: Bakerman) Founded in the 2020 Covid lockdown, Dan wanted Bakerman to create jobs for young adults facing challenges like exclusion, neurodivergence, poverty and poor mental health.

Dan continued: "Up until now we’ve been primarily baking through the night, it’s not been easy for us to do the training that we set out to do, so this will now allow us to do that."

The not-for-profit launched a Crowdfunder earlier this year to help fund equipment, products, and training. It raised more than £18,000.

"It's not easy to raise money and, because we're not-for-profit, we can't just go to a bank and get a loan," he said.

"We had some lottery grants and social investments, but on top of that we did the crowdfunding for some extra.

(Image: Dan and the staff at Bakerman) "It bought our new bread oven, which is what we set the target for, but we've reached three times that. We can now bake three times as much bread than we used to in the same amount of time."

Nearby stores were pleased to see the venue reopen, as they said it "brought new faces to the yard".

Helen Eland , owner of neighbouring 'Echo 3' coffee house, said: "It’s nice that new faces are coming. Obviously, the refurbishment needed to be done, but it's nice to have the yard back open."

(Image: BAKERMAN) Katie Marray, 31, retail assistant at the Cheese and Wine shop, said: "Everyone was there when they opened. I think they had a queue by the door by quarter to nine, and they sold out by ten.

"It's really positive. They did tasters so we got to try all the food, which means we can recommend it when customers ask, because we know it's good.

Read more:

"You get different things from the different businesses round here, which compliment each other. I often see customers come in with their Echo 3 coffee and Bakerman bags to buy their cheese from us, which is really nice."

Customers can also now pick up Wildfarmed flour, used in Bakerman's signature sourdough, from the shop.

Bakerman remains rooted in Clark's Yard, trading from Wednesday to Saturday, 9am-4pm.