The Cornish Bakery, a national award-winning bakery - with an outlet on Sidmouth High Street - has secured £1 million through the Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme (CBILS) to support its reopening.

The business, which has 400 employees across 45 bakeries closed its doors to customers on March 23 and had to furlough all but seven of the team.

Steve Grocutt, the founder of The Cornish Bakery, said: "The loan provided by Clydesdale Bank will allow us to quickly reintroduce cash flow into the business to allow us to become operational again.

"The team at the bank was fully supportive in making sure we could not only work towards reopening our 45 bakeries up and down the country as quickly as was possible, but we will also be able to use this loan to future-proof the business by launching new digital revenue streams.

"Without the financial support coming to us as quickly as it did, we could be hit harder should a second peak of the virus hit the country. This funding will not only help us to survive but hopefully thrive.

"Our hopes now are to not only to return the business to normal but hopefully grow the business through these new revenue streams and in time through acquisition. We are incredibly positive about the future of the business and look forward to welcoming our staff and customers back to the bakeries."

The loan will allow the business to ensure there is adequate cash flow to be able to reopen doors to customers over the coming weeks.

Stewart Linnane, relationship manager at Clydesdale Bank, added: "We are proud to be able to support The Cornish Bakery in helping to secure that positive future."