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Shen's Cafe and Bank Street Pizzeria
Business Gateway helps young couple set the table for success with Stornoway café and pizza takeaway.
A Stornoway couple has successfully revamped a local café and a pizza takeaway with support from Business Gateway, Scotland’s national business advisory service.
Shen’s Café and Bank Street Pizzeria both provide quality and affordable food for their customers. Shen’s Café sells a range of breakfast and lunch items, while Bank Street Pizzeria boasts a range of stone-baked pizzas, flavourful sides, and burgers made with meat from the local butchers.
Co-owners and partners Robbie MacLeod and Katie Woods had previously run a catering trailer and spotted an opportunity to branch out to fixed premises when they saw two food businesses going up for sale.
With both premises needing extensive work, Robbie and Katie approached Business Gateway to ensure Shen’s Café and Bank Street Pizzeria could build a solid foundation to work from in the future.
Through Business Gateway, the couple benefitted from dedicated support from a one-to-one business adviser, as well as advice on their business plan and routes to funding.
Robbie and Katie also received grant funding from the COVID-19 Economic Recovery Grant Scheme (CERGS), which helped towards the purchase of new kitchen equipment.
After getting the basic equipment in place, the couple now have their sights set on revamping the entire pizzeria, and are aiming to relaunch early next year with an online ordering system.
Robbie MacLeod, co-owner of Bank Street Pizzeria and Shen’s Café, said:
“Business Gateway has been a fantastic support over the last year, and our advisers have been very patient with us despite our very busy schedules. Our lovely customers have given both our café and pizzeria a real sense of community. I’m very much looking forward to the next steps of this mad journey.”
Fiona Chisholm, Business Gateway adviser, said:
“It’s been fantastic to watch Shen’s Café and Bank Street Pizzeria being brought to life in the local area. The customer demand is testament to the dedication and hard work of both Robbie and Katie, which I’m sure will continue in the months ahead.”
Visit the Business Gateway website to find out how they can help your business.