'We don't need a Gail's' - the coffee shop boom dividing locals

There is simply a cheerful reddish awning and a recently painted pick woody shopfront connected the marketplace quadrate successful Macclesfield.

A caller bakery cafe has conscionable opened, offering ciabatta and sourdough loaves arsenic good arsenic blistery transverse buns, syrupy cakes, rootlike quiches and of people coffee.

Like towns astir the UK, Macclesfield has struggled with retailers closing, leaving bare stores, truthful determination is simply a buzz astir the caller arrival.

But Gail's, a marque that started successful London much than 20 years ago, is controversial. It draws crowds and inspires societal media memes, but attracts fierce disapproval too.

A caller spate of nationalist media sum has adjacent asked wherefore immoderate radical "hate" Gail's truthful much, focusing connected everything from who owns it to what it does with unsold pastries.

Its accomplishment isn't universally fashionable present either.

"We don't request different java shop," says Linda Willdig. She is retired buying with her person Nicola Tomlinson, who agrees. "There are excessively many," says Nicola.

In fact, from a array extracurricular the caller Gail's you could easy propulsion a cinnamon bun and deed some a Caffe Nero and a Costa. Gregg's is conscionable astir the country too.

So thing antithetic mightiness person been better, says Jane Kent, a assemblage nurse.

"People volition beryllium larding retired connected each the bakery stuff," she says. "We don't request much pastries."

At heart, though, the objections to Gail's are not astir what it sells, but that it doesn't truly belong, that it volition propulsion up prices and enactment autarkic cafes retired of business.

But Stephanie Lamb, a teacher connected maternity leave, is much welcoming.

"I don't cognize Gail's, truthful it's not needfully a concatenation to me," she says. "I'm conscionable blessed to person thing other successful town."

She likes a latte and a croissant and determination she tin work a publication for an hour.

At Gail's prices that would acceptable her backmost £6.50. Yes, it's pricey, she says, but she is inactive readying to "give it a whirl".

Gail's - a sanction that suggests a traditional, single-owner, cafe - favours charismatic aged buildings, often ones vacated arsenic slope branches close, particularly if it is simply a country tract that means it's much disposable to passers by.

It has 170 outlets mostly clustered successful London and the southbound east. But this twelvemonth it plans to unfastened astir 40 more, including Ely, Cambridgeshire aboriginal this month, Bath successful April, and Buxton, Derbyshire successful May.

At Friday's opening successful Macclesfield determination was a flurry of involvement successful the caller spot connected the square.

Even successful the aftermath of the outgo of surviving crisis, we are progressively choosing a java retired arsenic a treat. Nearly two-thirds of radical said they went to a java store much than erstwhile a week, according to World Coffee Portal, spending much than £6 per sojourn connected average.

So java shops are weathering the pugnacious economical clime amended than astir businesses. There are present 11,450 branded concatenation outlets crossed the UK, up from 9,800 5 years ago.

Speciality chains similar Black Sheep Coffee, Coffee#1 and Blank Street are springing up successful metropolis centres, portion the giants similar Costa and Starbucks are opening drive-throughs and outlets successful retail parks.

Caffe Nero has bought up respective smaller chains, successful antithetic parts of the country, and is retaining their autarkic branding truthful it tin marque the astir of section loyalties.

With enthusiasm for java truthful beardown it's thing of a enigma to Gail's main enforcement Tom Molnar wherefore radical entity to his chain. He feels misunderstood.

Mr Molnar - a associated proprietor with backstage equity backing - has been moving connected expanding the marque since helium joined successful 2003, but says it's not conscionable astir coffee. Its relation arsenic a neighbourhood bakery - baking caller in-store and successful determination bakery hubs each time - is key.

He's hoping to rotation Gail's retired to galore much neighbourhoods, including little affluent ones.

"It's not expected to beryllium posh," helium insists.

But for present they prime precise cautiously wherever to open, utilizing an algorithm to assistance prime the astir promising postcodes.

It flags up things similar whether determination is simply a section butcher, bookshops, a park, schools, churches oregon a farmers' market.

"I similar a spot that's evolving and increasing alternatively than immoderate spot that's excessively established," helium says.

If the algorithm homes successful connected a peculiar High Street it is simply a ballot of assurance successful that town's future.

But retail experts pass that the precise quality of the places that Gail's is picking means determination are apt to beryllium accusations of gentrification, expanding prices and rents for existing businesses and residents.

"Gail's is moving into areas with beardown section identities. And erstwhile that happens, determination volition ever beryllium a reaction," says Kate Hardcastle, laminitis of Insight with Passion.

"It's not conscionable astir a bakery opening, I deliberation it's besides astir what it represents.

"Some volition spot it arsenic a motion of concern and revitalisation, portion others interest it's different measurement backmost to our High Streets looking similar c copies of each other," she says.

In Flour, Water, Salt - a nonstop rival to Gail's selling sourdough bread, bagels, coffee-iced buns and sausage rolls - that is conscionable yards from the caller shop, immoderate loyal customers are adamantly opposed to the newcomer.

"Gail's isn't invited here," says Karen Pearson, a businesswoman who lives conscionable extracurricular Macclesfield. She and her friends are disquieted that the accomplishment of Gail's means the municipality is "on the up", erstwhile successful information they would alternatively it "stayed similar it is".

They're not keen connected large corporations coming into the town, acrophobic they mightiness compression retired independents.

But firefighter and section councillor Anthony Harrison, reckons Gail's is nary lucifer for a spot similar Flour, Water, Salt. "It's conscionable a posh Gregg's," helium says.

Independents whitethorn not beryllium arsenic nether menace arsenic radical fear, says Graham Soult, a retail advisor from the northbound of England.

Local owners tin connection a much idiosyncratic touch, respond to section tastes and demands, helium says, portion it tin beryllium hard for chains to deviate from their fixed formula.

"I deliberation a batch of independents are truly adept astatine navigating each the things that are thrown astatine them," helium says.

Despite hard times, the fig of autarkic java shops has risen implicit the past 5 years from 11,700 to astir 12,400 now.

Flour, Water, Salt's manager Toby Johnstone isn't worried. It could mean much footfall, with much radical trying his store too.

"We are blessed there's thing other opening and keeping the municipality centre going," helium says. "It's bully to person competition."