AN EAST Lancashire bakery believes its new cakes are helping it to cream off the profits.

Clayton Park Bakery says a sharp rise in sales is down to a new range of cream cakes and bread products.

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Managing director Barry Thomas said turnover has increased by a whopping 40 per cent in the past 12 months due to the ‘phenomenal success of several new lines’.

The bakery’s fortunes have transformed since it became part of James Hall and Co, the Spar wholesaler for the north of England.

Clayton Park’s new cream cakes – including a twin pack Cream Crisp, a two-pack Victoria Sponge, and a twin-pack variant of the Manchester Tart – have helped generate more than £1.3 million of retail sales for Spar since they were launched a year ago.

Even before that, the business had to open a new bakery in Huncoat, near Accrington, in November 2013 to cope with demand.

The new unit produced more than 80,000 packs of cream cakes in just 10 weeks, including 30,000 single chocolate éclairs.

Mr Thomas said: “The last 12 months have been great for Clayton Park and we are seeing growth right across the business.

“Since we opened a second bakery in Huncoat, the demand for our cream cakes and bread products has risen considerably .

“But we can’t afford to rest on our laurels, which is why we are constantly developing new products.”

Earlier this year, the bakery landed a deal to supply a range of meat pies for the supermarket Booths.

The Petre Road firm is also the official pie supplier to a number of football clubs.