Before the sausage roll: Greggs began on a pushbike in Gosforth

At the end of 2025 there were 2,739 Greggs shops. Every one of them goes back to a man on a bike in Newcastle.

Eggs, yeast and a pushbike

Greggs tells its own story like this: John Gregg started out delivering “fresh eggs and yeast” to Newcastle families, by pushbike. Wikipedia dates the founding to 1939. The first shop opened in 1951 on Gosforth High Street. In the company’s words, he “chained up his bike and opened Greggs of Gosforth”.

They also say “there’s still a Greggs there today, although it’s looking a little bit different these days”. Today that’s Greggs on Gosforth High Street, at 133–135. We couldn’t find a reliable record of the original shop number, so we can’t promise it’s the same doorway. It’s the same street, though, and that pilgrimage costs about as much as a steak bake.

John Gregg died in 1964. His son Ian took over the bakery, helped by his brother Colin. In 2016 the head office moved from Jesmond to Quorum Business Park in Longbenton, North Tyneside.

The roll that broke the internet, briefly

On 3 January 2019, Greggs launched a vegan sausage roll. Piers Morgan didn’t take it well.

“Nobody was waiting for a vegan bloody sausage, you PC-ravaged clowns.” (Piers Morgan on Twitter, January 2019, as reported by The Drum)

Greggs replied: “Oh hello Piers, we’ve been expecting you.” It’s still one of the best replies a bakery has ever posted.

The original roll has since been honoured too. In summer 2025 a wax model of the Greggs sausage roll “rested on a velvet cushion in Madame Tussauds”. According to Greggs’ 2025 results, it was the first time a food had been honoured that way.

The quieter bit

Every year, Greggs plc gives 1% of its pre-tax profits to the Greggs Foundation, and the company says it provides “7.5 million free wholesome breakfasts to primary school children every year”.

Where to pay your respects

Start in Gosforth. In town, there’s Greggs on Northumberland Street, and if you’ve a train to catch, there’s Greggs at Central Station. In Stanley, Greggs at 52 Front Street does the job. Log what you had. Someone has to keep score.