Muffin Break

Muffin Break is a bakery café franchise trading from around 70 stores in the UK, all of them owned by franchisees.

The brand originated in Canada in the 1970s and was acquired by the Australian group Foodco, which relaunched it in its current form at Coolangatta, Queensland, in 1989. Foodco brought Muffin Break to the UK in late 2001 with a first café in Derby, and added its sister brand Jamaica Blue at Cambridge in 2014. In May 2026 the group reached 100 UK outlets across both brands with a 1,500 sq ft Muffin Break in Worthing town centre, split between 85 stores in England, eight in Scotland, six in Northern Ireland and one in Wales. Sweet and savoury items are baked in on-site kitchens daily, alongside a made-to-order brunch menu and coffee from 100% Arabica beans.

Why Choose the Franchise Muffin Break?

Two formats are available: a kiosk bakery café of roughly 27 to 30m² and an in-line café of 80 to 120m², suited to shopping centres, high streets, airports and railway stations. On the franchisor’s own figures a store costs around £250,000, made up of roughly £200,000 for fit-out, £40,000 for equipment and a £25,000 initial fee, with a further £20,000 for legal fees and stamp duty. Recent openings at Eltham and Worthing were each described as £300,000 investments creating up to 15 jobs. Foodco points to its relationships with major retail landlords as the route to sites, and states that no hospitality experience is required. Multi-store ownership is common: the largest franchisee runs 16 stores across both brands, and several hold five or six Muffin Breaks each. Foodco has five further UK outlets scheduled, is exploring smaller food-to-go formats, and is in discussions with airports and railway stations about travel hub sites, with a possible entry into the Republic of Ireland in 2027.