A Bread for All Seasons
How August became Southwest London's favourite bakery.
Words my Maisie Burgess
Photos by Harriet Langford
Walking into August Bakery, it’s difficult to imagine its genesis in Harry and Florrie’s home kitchen. There’s multiple people making coffee in the front, bakers all over the place, and sourdough spilling out of every corner.
Since their opening at the end of 2024, August Bakery has gone from strength to strength to become one of the staples of South London (if you, like me, have a priority list built predominately on bread and pastry). Before 2024, Harry was running the bakery from his home in Battersea, carting his wares around on his bike during lockdown. When they opened their site on Battersea Rise, they were a team of four bakers. That’s now a team of ten.
Prior to bread becoming a full-time way of life, Harry and Florrie were both deep in the corporate world. Far from their current independent food community, Harry was working for dairy giant Danon. Having come from a family of farmers, it wasn’t long before he knew he wanted to go back to something more small scale and meaningful. Taking inspiration from his grandmother, a ‘prolific cake baker’ who dominated the village baking competition circuit, Harry started to really lean back into baking. Uncertain as to whether the baking would be a lockdown side hustle, it was clear that the idea had real legs when Florrie jumped into the business.
Today August feels like the centre of this corner of Battersea, every few customers stop for a chat, running into neighbours and friends all amongst the gentle waft of freshly baked sourdough. At August there’s a focus on seasonality and good produce which speaks to their more eco-conscious principles and origins. Regenerative wheat is from Wildfarmed, and spelt and rye is from Gilchester’s. Bakes change with the seasons as fresh fruit and vegetables come in from Shrub; plums turn to peaches which turn to apples as the year wears on. But they’re still playful with this. Take the Miso, Apple and Almond Danish that hit the shelf a few weeks ago. A nod to tradition, some beautifully produced ingredients, but with a little innovation. Last month there was a bit of a craze when the Banoffee Danish came out; it was a sell out. Whilst bananas may not seem like the most local or seasonal fruit, even this was a sustainable decision. “Bananas are brilliant because they are eternal and fairly low impact,” highlights Harry. During the ‘hungry gap’, bananas, which can be shipped overseas pretty slowly, are a good solution. And even more delicious when paired with caramel and good pastry.
