Tech advice proves to be a vital ingredient for growth of Bath-based cake company

Jess Langford-Snape set up the Wild Flour Cake Company, her award-winning Bath-based business, in 2015 with help from The Prince’s Trust (now called The King’s Trust). “I’d lost a few jobs and was working in a coffee shop, but I really needed to do my own thing,” she recalls. 

Although the coffee she made was good, the cakes Jess sold were heavily processed and full of preservatives, flavourings and sugar. “I knew I could make cakes that tasted better and more homemade,” she adds. “My auntie was a MasterChef finalist, my grandparents ran hotels and restaurants, and I grew up in a B&B. My whole family is food obsessed, which is where my love of food comes from,” she reveals. 

In classic entrepreneurial style, Jess started her business from her kitchen table, armed only with a hand whisk, Aga oven and her grandmother’s cake tins. Initially, she made wedding cakes, but that offered limited commercial opportunity, so she began creating other mouthwatering delights, initially supplying local cafes and farmer’s markets. 

Jess’s business has since grown significantly. It now has 15 employees and operates from an impressive production facility on a farm in Timsbury, near Bath. “Our mixers and ovens are larger now, and our thinking is modern, but we use traditional baking techniques and the best local ingredients,” Jess emphasises. 

“Many of our products are low-gluten or vegan, and our range includes round cakes, traybakes, brownies, blondies, muffins, flapjacks and cookies. We sell wholesale to hospitality businesses in the South West and beyond – including London and Scotland. Our cakes are even eaten as far away as Bermuda,” she smiles. 

In 2025, ambitious for more growth without increasing her costs or headcount, Jess wanted to learn how she could better harness the power of digital technology. Previously she had received an email telling her about a new government-funded support programme providing free tech consultancy to South West businesses. She applied, was accepted and put in touch with innovation and growth expert, Aimeé Skinner. 

“It was all very simple and quick,” Jess recalls. “We had one introductory phone call and one face-to-face meeting, when I explained our key business challenges. Aimeé later sent over a fantastic report, which she talked me through at another meeting.” 

Aimeé identified the Wild Flour Cake Company as well positioned for growth, with strong demand, increased production capacity and a clear opportunity to expand direct B2B and postal orders. However, current sales, delivery and customer information was held across multiple systems and spreadsheets, making it difficult to see what was really happening overall in the business’s sales pipeline, so Jess couldn’t easily access key data, such as conversion rate. 

“Rather than introduce a CRM [customer relationship management] software system at that point, instead, Aimeé advised us to focus on improving our sales visibility and consistency by using digital tools to better understand our existing data,” Jess explains.

Aimeé identified several quick wins, including improving delivery date clarity for customers and turning existing sales data into simple, shared reports, which would reduce friction, save time and improve Jess’s decision-making. 

The next stage would be to strengthen the underlying data that supports sales and their follow-up. By moving sales pipeline information into a structured database and capturing basic customer feedback, the business could better understand why customers converted or dropped off. 

With these essential foundations in place, the Wild Flour Cake Company would be much better placed to introduce a new CRM system, which would help to fuel significant additional sales. Jess adds: “Aimeé’s detailed report also included a long list of recommended digital tools, with a concise explanation of their benefits. And there was a comprehensive list of pain points in various areas of my business, with explanations of the opportunities they each offered.” 

Actioning Aimeé’s recommendations has brought many benefits. As Jess explains: “There have been significant time and cost savings. It’s difficult to quantify those exactly, but it has freed up lots of my time, so I’ve been able to get on with other things that contribute greater value to my business. We’ve also been able to improve our productivity and better understand our sales without adding to our costs. 

“The process didn’t take up too much time, just a few short meetings. And it gave us free access to a highly experienced consultant who made lots of valuable recommendations. I’m very grateful for the support we received,” she concludes.

Tech Adoption for Growth is a government-funded programme offering free, practical support to help sole traders and small businesses in Bristol and North Somerset, Bath and North East Somerset, South Gloucestershire, and Swindon and Wiltshire gain far greater value from digital tools and technology so they can succeed and grow. Businesses are randomly allocated either one-to-one expert tech consultancy support or the opportunity to take part in expert-led tech-themed workshops. To apply, fill out this simple form and we’ll get back to you.