EXCLUSIVE Would you want a Gail's bakery where you live? Brits say posh chain is good news for house prices but fear 'spending £10 on coffee and cake' - after revolt at plans for new eaterie in Walthamstow By Frankie Elliott For Mailonline Published: 11:27, 16 August 2024 | Updated: 11:39, 16 August 2024 e-mail 41 View comments Not many things split the Great British public opinion more than their views on high street coffee chains. For many, grabbing a Costa , Starbucks or Pret is as fundamental a part of their morning routine as it is brushing their teeth. Others are appalled by the sight of these stores and symbolize them as everything that is wrong with the modern world.
But now there is a new player that has been rising through the ranks and entering the national coffee game, driving even more divide between residents in towns and villages up and down the country. Gail's Bakery started as a single store in Hampstead, north-west London , and slowly began to spread across the capital before cherry picking new towns and cities to set up in. The chain now has more than 130 shops across Britain already and is seen by many as the successor to Waitrose , with plans now in place for new sites to be opened across Britain.
But their rise to prominence has not been welcomed with open arms, as some look to fight the gentrification of their town. This week, it was reported that hundreds of residents in Walthamstow had signed a petition to stop the company opening on their high stree.