Michael Vernon "Mike" Baldwin was a London-born businessman who owned and managed the Baldwin's Casuals and Underworld factories in Coronation Street from 1976 to 2006. Mike started his career as a market stall holder but within a few years was running his own factory. In 1976, he opened denim-maker Baldwin's Casuals in Weatherfield and moved there, ending his relationship with his common-law wife Anne Woodley. As an employer, Mike was uncompromising, quick to threaten his machinists with the sack if they slacked and taking a dim view of workers getting above themselves.