West Cornwall Pasty

About West Cornwall Pasty

West Cornwall Pasty Company was launched in 1998 by Ken Cocking, a serial entrepreneur, along with his sons, Arron and Gavin, and Mark Christophers. The first store was opened in Chippenham, Wiltshire, and the firm was initially financed by family and friends. After nine years, Cockings sold the company to its management for £40m in October 2007.

In April 2014, private equity house Gresham, the owners of the company, put it into administration, blaming its failure on the government’s decision to charge VAT on pasties. The company was subsequently sold to another private equity fund, Endless, backed by Danny Mills, a former England footballer, and others. Losses were reduced by expanding the company’s range and by taking a more targeted approach, concentrating on outlets such as railway stations and sports venues.

Endless sold the business in 2017 to Samworth Brothers, who already owned the Ginsters pasty brand. At that time, there were 33 shops and 19 franchises at motorway service stations.

In what was described as a temporary measure, all the company’s shops closed in March 2020 in response to the covid-19 pandemic. In the last quarter of that year, Samworth decided to close the shops permanently as they were “unviable”. The brand continues to thrive through circa 100 sites across its railway, retail, motorway service station sites and stadium operations.

In November 2025, the company told the Propel Franchisor Showcase that it is open to a return to the high street. Commercial director Nick Anderson said while the company won’t be opening any equity high street stores, it will be an option for franchisees. “There is an opportunity in the high street 100%, for franchisees with the right location to get that return - whether that’s a full sit down to a grab and go area,” he said. “Not in terms of company-owned - we’ve already been there.

Why franchise with West Cornwall Pasty

• ✓The brand currently operates in rail, petrol forecourts/MSAs, retail and stadia. It will offer full marketing support, with a support package including digital, outdoor and activation to drive footfall. The company said it has created a low investment and operational cost model to drive the maximum returns. Kiosks are pre-built and have limited back of house requirements. They can also be single-manned, and all food is prepared to go. They are designed for the desired space and can be designed to perform in any location.
• ✓The company said its franchise model offers low capital investment, easy operations and supply chain and low labour requirements, with full marketing support.
• ✓Commercial director Nick Anderson said the company currently operates across 11 mainline stations in partnership with SSP and Network Rail and hopes to have 20 locations by the end of 2026. He said: “We have several different concepts in rail, and all are performing extremely well – from full-service cafes to quick service kiosks. The cost in terms of set up with Network Rail isn’t cheap, but beyond that, in terms of other channels, I think there’s greater opportunities where the cost would be a lot more modest.”
• ✓Anderson said the company is particularly proud of its sports stadium concessions. He added: “We have 13 concessions at Twickenham – plus a few at Leicester Tigers – and our pasties are the seconds best seller at Twickenham after Guinness.”