Kendal Mint Cake been making confectionery since 1840 in the Isle of Man. When one of the four sons, Daniel Quiggin, moved to Kendal in 1880, the mint cake company was formed. In the BBC TV programme "Great British Menu", series 5, Lisa Allen visited Quiggin's factory and used Quiggin's Kendal Mint Cake in her Strawberries with Meringue & Kendal Mint Cake Water Ice dessert. In the BBC TV programme "Great British Railway Journeys" (Series 7, Episode 2), Michael Portillo visited Quiggin's factory. Wilson's Mint Cake was founded in 1913, when James Wilson purchased a factory in the Stricklandgate area of the town.
Cake makers could expend their creative energy on cake decorating inspired by, among other things, photographs in magazines of elaborately decorated cakes. Ever since, cake in a box has become a staple of supermarkets, and is complemented with frosting in a can. Cakes are broadly divided into several categories, based primarily on ingredients and mixing techniques. Although clear examples of the difference between cake and bread are easy to find, the precise classification has always been elusive. For example, banana bread may be properly considered either a quick bread or a cake. Some varieties of cake are widely available in the