Operation Cinnamon Bun and the great Gail’s bakery revolt: Inside the town fighting ‘gentrified’ bakery…because of owner’s ‘anti-lockdown and pro-Brexit views’ [Video]

11:09 EDT 14 Aug 2024, updated 11:56 EDT 14 Aug 2024

Residents of Walthamstow Village today said a controversial new Gail’s branch was the ‘ultimate sign of gentrification’ and will see independent coffee shops lose trade.

Locals in the East London enclave spoke to MailOnline today about their concerns as some fight to stop the upmarket bakery opening an outlet on their high street.

Some business owners claim local resistance is down to the firm’s pro-Brexit and anti-lockdown chairman Luke Johnson, who has called some eco activists ‘alarmists’.

There is an apparent feeling that Mr Johnson does not align with the politics of the area, which backed Remain in 2016 and has had a Labour MP for more than 30 years.

Residents also fear Gail’s could put independents out of business and hundreds have signed a petition against it after the chain announced plans to open 35 new UK sites.

People in the area claimed today that the plans were ‘not …