Business born from humble farmer’s milk round celebrates its 70th successful year as household name in Milton Keynes

Taylor’s Dairies has become a household name over the decades and now delivers milk, bread, eggs and other staples to almost 3,500 customers in and around the city.

The business started humbly on September 16 1956 when David Taylor bought a milk round serving 250 customers from a farmer in Newton Longville. He paid the grand sum of £700.

David, who had helped the local Buckingham milkman from the age of eight, simply wanted his own milk round and set about building up his dream. Operating seven days a week, he covered Bletchley and Newton Longville, delivering creamy from guernsey cows in one pint glass bottles.

The following year he introduced pasteurised milk too, adding another round and employing another roundsman. And by 1960 business was booming enough for him to open small depot of his own behind Scott Meats factory in Bletchley.

By 1972 Taylor’s Dairies was selling Christmas hampers, a real success with customers, and the following year they moved to a purpose- built depot on Bletchley’s Mount Farm.

Incredibly, David found the time to devote himself to local politics, serving as a popular local Conservative councillor for decades and going on to become a much respected Mayor of Milton Keynes and raising large sums for charity. He was later made an Alderman for his contribution to the council and the new city.

His own son Anthony was introduced to the milk rounds at an early age and, like his father, began helping out on the floats by the age of eight. David retired in 1988, handing the business to Anthony.

The business continued to grow and even branched out into delivering garden compost to grateful households. Meanwhile, in 1991 staff began using printed computerised round books to replace pens and paper and, in the year 2000, started operating six days a week so staff could have Sundays off for the first time.

More time was saved in 2011 when the delivery staff began using handheld computers to replace the traditional rounds books.

In 2023 Anthony retired, leaving the business to his own son Steven, the third generation of Taylors to take the reins.

Today, for Steven and his employees, business is very different from days gone by when the old-fashioned milk floats battled through snow and ice (including during the worst winter in 1963) to get the pints on doorsteps.

Today’s delivery vehicles are faster and modern, including electric Maxus floats proudly purchased by Taylor’s a few months ago to enable them to serve every MK postcode.

And since 2024 the dairy has only operated for four days a week, a move designed to give more work-life balance to its staff.

The company’s basic ethos has never changed though: they still promise to get milk on the doorsteps by 7.30am at the latest and bring customers high-quality products as cheaply as they can.

The milk comes from Cotteswold Dairy , which is one of the largest independent family dairies that processes, packs and delivers fresh milk, cream and complementary products.

It prides itself on using family-run farms, saying “a healthy and happy cow produces great-tasting milk”.