Local Businesses are blooming as they generated £100,000 in sales within the permanent Unity store in Queensgate, which was set up by Up The Garden Bath in the lead-up to Christmas.
Queensgate Shopping Centre only handed owner Dave Poulton the keys for a permanent shop in November 2023 and has since generated £100,000 in revenue for local start-ups.
Previous pop-up shops within Westgate Arcade and the old Next complex were a success, having opened their first in October 2021 where they began to welcome and support fellow local businesses, gaining £60,000 worth of sales in a total of 12 weeks of operation.
Dave Poulton says, “the store has something for everyone,” with over 50 local start-up businesses selling within the former Paperchase complex in Queensgate Shopping Centre, including crafters and artists.”
When asked what the plans for the future hold, Dave Poulton said: “We want to help the local businesses get to the next level of their journey.”
“We are also looking at utilising the giant window in the store to advertise sponsors - we want to extend the mile radius of businesses welcome to trade at the shop too.”
“We have large ambitions too including working with Queensgate to create a plant wall in the car parks, and have plans to create a community garden within the East of England Showground.”
The company was originally set up in 2019 when Poulton was struggling to get back into work after recovering from illness.
One upcycled bath transformed into a herb garden soon turned into hundreds, as they visited an abundance of schools and care homes around the city.
Many schools benefitted from the project as students gained understanding of the importance of healthy eating and supporting the environment.
When Coronavirus hit, the pandemic abruptly halted the plans for the company, so they were forced to think smaller.
Up The Garden Bath created a planter-turned-envelope and were quickly lifted by support from Dragon’s Den’s Theo Paphitis as they won ‘Small Business Sunday’ award after only a month of trading.