Choosing a bakery POS system sounds like a back-office decision, until the queue is out the door and the card machine freezes. For Bread Ahead, one of London's best-known bakeries, the till is part of the product. In this Square customer story, founder Matthew Jones explains how Square helps a seven-day bakery handle up to 4,000 transactions a day, run a full restaurant and read the health of the business at a glance.

"Opening a bakery in central London, it's a seven-day-a-week operation. It's brutal, it's hard, it's ruthless. It doesn't go to sleep."

Bread Ahead at a glance

• Business: artisan bakery, baking school and restaurant, London

• Founded: 2013, at Borough Market

• Busiest site: 3,000 to 4,000 transactions a day

• Set-up: Square POS across its sites, with restaurant features such as table mapping at Wembley

• Before Square: cash only, then bank PDQ machines, with historic sales kept in spreadsheets

From cash only to a digital partner

Bread Ahead started at Borough Market in 2013 selling four types of bread. "It was very, very simple, and that was really the foundation," Matthew says. The market has a magnetic quality: people go there for food.

The payment set-up started just as simply. The stall was cash only when it opened, then moved to bank-issued PDQ card machines, "the dinosaur things with a little roll of paper in the back." As the business grew into much bigger spaces, it needed tech that could keep up.

"We're an analogue business, and Square is our digital partner."

That line sums up the brief for any independent food business. The craft stays analogue: flour, ovens and early starts. The tech's job is to stay out of the way.

Why speed is the first test of a bakery POS

For Matthew, the customer journey is everything: the product, the experience and how people interact with it. Anything that slows that process down "slows us down".

At a high-footfall site like Borough Market, Bread Ahead handles 3,000 to 4,000 transactions a day. At that volume, a few extra seconds per sale turn into a longer queue, and a longer queue turns into walk-aways. A bakery till has to be fast and reliable before anything else.

"Square just works. I just plug it in and run my business."

One POS for bakery counters and a full restaurant

Bread Ahead runs Square in much the same way across every site, which keeps training simple and operations consistent. But the same system flexes when a site needs more.

At Wembley, Bread Ahead runs a full restaurant operation, and Matthew uses Square's restaurant functionality for:

• Table mapping to manage the floor and covers

• Menu specifications set up on each item

• All the small components a table-service operation needs, programmed into the system

"It just makes life so much easier."

For multi-format operators, this is the useful lesson: one POS that covers quick-service counters and table service saves running two systems, two sets of training and two sets of reports.

Sales data as a barometer of business health

Square has become a crucial part of how Bread Ahead understands its performance. Matthew can look back at this week last year, or this time last year, and see precisely what is going on.

Before, the team relied on historic spreadsheets. Now all the data sits in one place.

"It's a barometer of the health of the business in a snapshot. That data is invaluable to a business."

Freedom to focus on the food

Matthew describes the relationship with Square as "extraordinary". It has given him the freedom to run the business and concentrate on his part of the job.

"My bit of the job is creating amazing food. You guys do the rest."

What to look for in a bakery POS system

Bread Ahead's story points to five questions worth asking any POS provider before you sign:

• Can it keep up at peak? Ask how the system performs at your busiest hour, not your average one.

• Is it easy to roll out across sites? A standard set-up means faster training and fewer mistakes when you open somewhere new.

• Does it handle more than one service style? If you run a counter and a sit-down space, check for table mapping and menu options in the same system.

• How easy is the reporting? You should be able to compare this week with the same week last year in seconds, without exporting to a spreadsheet.

• Will it free up your time? The right tech gives founders and managers time back for product and people.

For a wider comparison, see our guide to 10 POS systems for UK hospitality in 2026.

Frequently asked questions

What POS system does Bread Ahead use?

Bread Ahead uses Square across its sites, including restaurant functionality such as table mapping and menu specifications at its Wembley restaurant.

When did Bread Ahead start?

Bread Ahead opened at Borough Market in London in 2013, selling four types of bread.

How many transactions does Bread Ahead process?

At a busy site like Borough Market, Bread Ahead handles 3,000 to 4,000 transactions a day.

Is Square a good POS for bakeries?

Bread Ahead uses Square for both quick-service bakery counters and a full table-service restaurant. Every bakery is different, so compare options on the Stacked marketplace against your own volumes and service style.

What should a bakery look for in a POS system?

Speed at peak times, a consistent set-up across sites, support for counter and table service, and year-on-year reporting in one place.

Find the right POS for your bakery

Watch the full Bread Ahead and Square customer story on YouTube, or read our earlier interview, Stacked Meets Bread Ahead and Square POS, for more on Matthew's story and the bakery's international growth.

Comparing point of sale systems for a bakery, café or restaurant? See Square on the Stacked marketplace, browse other POS providers on the Stacked marketplace, or talk to the Stacked team for impartial advice.