Watch: Baker keeps up Market Drayton's gingerbread tradition
The town was once full of gingerbread bakers, each with their own family recipe.
And while only one now remains, the sweet treat is shipped all over the world to Italy, France and even the stars of Hollywood.
Image on Food, run by Sarah Hopcroft and business partner Tim Hopcroft, is the final gingerbread factory in Market Drayton.
The town has been dubbed home of the gingerbread, but the Shropshire Star revealed last week that it is a forgotten heritage. A pavement display of a gingerbread man, which once lay as a proud reminder of the link, is now so overgrown that it has been deemed an eyesore and is to be dug up.
But Image on Food is keeping the tradition alive and says it is spreading the word about the delights of gingerbread.
The firm's contact book is no longer just market day customers from the town – there are some stars studded onto its client base.
Sarah said: "In the film The Holiday, Cameron Diaz is eating our gingerbread.
"If you've got the DVD cover you can see she is sitting eating our gingerbread.
"That really was brilliant. We do over the years forget about a few of the clients and jobs but that was a really good one."
The company, which began back in 1987, has grown over the years from a business with just three members of staff to an internationally renowned baker.
The gingerbread experts have been known to make bats for Ozzy Osbourne, regularly export to Italy and France and have appeared on shows like Channel 4's Four in a Bed.
"I do absolutely love it," said Sarah. "I've been doing it a long time now."
But the business is by no means the first to pop up in the town.
Market Drayton has been branded the home of gingerbread, with many knowing the area for its links to the confectionery.
Clive of India, was born near the town and is said to have brought back the ginger spice to the town's bakers giving each bakery the chance to develop its own secret recipe.
The first record of the treat being made in the area was back in 1793, when Roland Lateward began a bakery at the back of his cottage in Shropshire Street.
In 1817 another bakery began in the corner of High Street and Church Street, which then became known as Billington's Gingerbread.
And while Billington's still makes the biscuit, it moved away from the town to Yorkshire and instead sells the product back to shops in the area.
Over the years a number of companies have either moved away, closed, or branched into something else leaving just one remaining gingerbread baker – Image on Food.
Sarah said: "We started at a shop in Shropshire Street called the Bread Bin and we baked for the Market Drayton market and the Whitchurch market.
Image on Food began in 1987 at The Bread Bin on Shropshire Street.
In the early days, gingerbread novelties were sold in the shop before a huge order for 700 farmyard animal shapes was put in by the Ironbridge Gorge Museum shop.
The company began with three staff but now has 37 in total.
The business produces around 50 tonnes of gingerbread a year.
Ingredients include wheat flour, demerara sugar and mixed spices.
Image on Food moved to the business park in 2006.
It now sells to Heals, Selfridges, Harvey Nichols, John Lewis and Waitrose.[/breakout]
"That was all back in 1987 to 1989 when the town was really being promoted as the home of gingerbread, which was down to Clive of India. All the families in the town had their own recipes but we were fairly new to the town so we concentrated on novelty biscuits."
In 1995 Sarah, who is originally from Rutland in the East Midlands,
moved the team to its current premises in Burnside Business Park where they create gingerbread in all shapes and designs – including sets for weddings, special occasions and birthday,s and even personalised designs for special gifts.
"We stopped baking bread and just focused on gingerbread which was a large gamble for us – we only had three members of staff back then," she said.
"Now we have 37. We've got an apprentice, a new starter, and of course lots of experienced members of staff."
The company sells to food retail chains and food service outlets as well as online and to corporate events producing 50 tonnes of gingerbread each year.
From Shakespeare's face to farm animals – the company decorates biscuits in all sorts of shapes and themes. In fact, Christmas season starts next week.
Sarah said: "Our first Christmas orders go out on August 3. But we are always working on new ranges. We have just done a nursery theme range, and we have our Halloween one as well."
Staff are now gearing up for the festive season which will be its busiest time of the year.
And with no chance of slowing down, Image on Food promises to stick around in Market Drayton for years to come.
While many have left the town or closed up shop, the final remaining gingerbread bakery will be sure to keep the town's links with the sweet treat alive.
