Fill Your Boots

Zero-waste shop celebrates third anniversary at Space

by Uncategorized

A Gloucester nurse is celebrating her third year helping people cut down on plastic after opening a zero-waste essentials shop during the pandemic.  

Private care nurse and mum of three, Louise Coleman launched loose food and home essentials shop Fill Your Boots at Space Business Centre Gloucester in January 2020.

Having been open only a matter of weeks before the pandemic and facing an uncertain future, Louise is now celebrating her third year in operation and is hoping to reach more of the Gloucestershire public.

The outlet offers customers a range of loose food, household items and eco-friendly products with a focus on sustainable, packaging-free shopping, as well as zero-waste party pack hires.

Louise was inspired to start the business after her children made her more aware of the impact plastic packaging has on the environment.

She said: “The pandemic was unintentionally a great time for me to start the business. Customers were able to spend more time choosing their purchases and thinking reflectively about the food they purchased, and lots of them have shopped with us ever since.

“The flexibility offered by units at the Space Business Centre also helped with the changing of restrictions, meaning we were able to respond quickly to keep customers safe.

“The short-term contracts available also helped to ease my worries during that time of upheaval and have given me the flexibility to grow my business the way I want to.

“With all my children attending school from next year, I am hoping to really grow the business and with the potential to move into a new unit, the future is looking bright.”

Space Business Centres Gloucester and Cheltenham are owned by property development company AC Lloyd and offer flexible, multi-use units ranging from 275 to 775 sq ft.

Lucy Iles, site manager at AC Lloyd Space Business in Gloucester and Cheltenham, said: “It is absolutely brilliant to see how much Fill Your Boots has grown since arriving at the Space Business Park in Gloucester.

“Fill Your Boots is a wonderful member of the community here as we continue to expand our retail offering, and we look forward to welcoming visitors to enjoy a different way of food shopping that helps customers reduce their impact on the environment while enjoying a friendly and engaging shopping experience.”

WP 2

SPACE BUSINESS SPOTLIGHT Street food favourites hitting the road from Cheltenham base

by Business spotlightNews

A street food business in Gloucestershire has set its sights on conquering the rest of the UK after expanding to a Cheltenham business park.

Cheltenham-based The Woozy Pig is hoping to take its high-quality burgers and hot dogs to festivals, corporate events and weddings nationwide after getting a taste for the national festival circuit.

The event catering business, which is run by professionally trained chef Matt Jefferies, only uses local suppliers and has become a favourite on the Cheltenham street-food scene with regular appearances at the Cheltenham Food Festival and other local events.

After moving to new premises at AC Lloyd Space Business Centre Cheltenham, the Woozy Pig has taken its street food truck to Wing Fest UK at the London Stadium and will head to Herefordshire for Lakefest, the UK’s fastest-growing family festival, in August.

Matt wants to take The Woozy Pig to more large-scale national events as it continues to grow.

He said: “We pride ourselves in using the best local suppliers to create real quality dishes for all sorts of events from weddings and celebrations to corporate functions and music festivals.

“We want to keep the momentum up now because we are gaining traction on the national circuit and are taking on more events in new places to showcase our food.

“Our new unit is a perfect size for us to achieve this as it is in a great location close to town with good national transport links for when we do head across the country for big events.

“We pivoted during lockdown to provide a ‘re-heat at home’ delivery service, which proved extremely popular and helped us to survive. Now that most of the major festivals are back up and running, we want to take our product to as many people as possible both in the region and across the UK.

“We are a fairly small team with just four of us working full time, so we gain huge satisfaction from seeing the business continue to grow, and having our fantastic base in Cheltenham at Space Business Centre and our amazing local suppliers has definitely played a part in that.”

Space Business Centres Gloucester and Cheltenham are owned by property development company AC Lloyd and offer flexible, multi-use units ranging from 275 to 775 sq ft.

Lucy Iles, site manager at Space Gloucester and Cheltenham, said: “It is inspiring to see the hard work that Matt and the team are putting into growing the Woozy Pig brand by consistently impressing wherever they go, and it is no surprise that they are making inroads on the national festival circuit.

“The Woozy Pig is a prime example of how our units can be a catalyst for entrepreneurs to turn a business idea into a success, and we hope that they will keep their strong local roots for years to come.”

Stay up-to-date with The Woozy Pig on Instagram by following @thewoozypig.

Gloucester

Gloucestershire business sites have all the ingredients for success JUNE BUSINESS SPOTLIGHT

by Business spotlight

A group of independent catering businesses are leading a culinary uprising at two Gloucestershire business parks, with flexible licences and a prime location helping owners rise above the competition.

A pair of new arrivals in recent weeks has seen Space Business Centres in Cheltenham and Gloucester turned into independent catering havens, with eight local business owners now using the units to prepare, serve and deliver a range of culinary delights for local foodies and town-centre shoppers.

The Woozy Pig, a street food and event catering business, and Three Little Pigs, a family-run burger and breakfast takeaway and delivery outlet, both launched at Space Cheltenham and Gloucester respectively in the spring, joining the likes of Japanese-inspired Sushi Day, and artisan bakers and suppliers Boys Bakery, as well as Humble Crumb and Nicky’s Cakes & Bakes across the two sites.  

The Gloucester site, which is located just off Bristol Road, is home to a number of takeaway businesses including Sushi Day, the Cotswold Caterer, Humble Crumb, Nicky’s Cakes and Bakes and Three Little Pigs, creating a culinary community for business owners and visitors.

Fill Your Boots, a zero-waste loose food and household essentials shop, can also be found on site, while Boys Bakery uses the site as a place to conduct business and grow the across the region, supplying other businesses and restaurants while creating delicious artisan food and drink for the public on select days throughout the month.

The Woozy Pig, which serves legendary brunch burgers on Saturdays and Sundays, uses its Cheltenham location as a base for its festival activity, and is joined by Dirty Boys, a takeaway and sandwich shop. A number of the resident businesses will be attending the Cheltenham Food and Drink Festival which runs at Montpellier Gardens from Friday, June 24 to Sunday, June 26.

Luca Bagattin, owner of Three Little Pigs, said: “I have really enjoyed the first couple of months at Space Business Centre. The unit we have is just perfect for what we doing and we are extremely glad to have such nice people on site.

“Regarding our business, I am very happy that customers are recommending us and are happy with the quality of the food, which really pushes us to do better and better.”

Lucy Iles, Site Manager at Space Gloucester and Cheltenham, said: “Our resident businesses have helped to create thriving business communities across both sites, which has been conducive to lots of success and growth especially with our food and catering businesses.  

“There is now a huge variety for people to enjoy whether they are popping in after doing some shopping or are looking for their new favourite takeaway treat, which perfectly complements the range of other businesses we have across our Space sites.

“Our tenants are very active on the regional festival circuit, and having a fixed location is a great way to boost their reputations, with happy customers able to seek them out whenever they are in town.”

Space Business Centres Gloucester and Cheltenham are owned by property development company AC Lloyd and offers flexible, multi-use units ranging from 275 to 775 sq ft.