News / Failand
New owners’ expansion plans for village store near Bristol
An entrepreneurial couple have secured the future of Failand’s village store and post office, with plans to expand it and create a community café.
Ryan and Lisa Anthoney, the new owners of the shop on Cleveland Road, intend to employ 11 members of staff, including a postmaster and retail assistants, to help run the enterprise.
Their vision is to create an “accessible and family-run community hub” that supports Bristol businesses. The store, now named Honey & Ginger, is already open and stocked with produce from local suppliers.
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Ryan owns several businesses, including Gloucester-based fitness brand Recharge Fitness and Lisa was a founding member of tax consultancy firm ForrestBrown in Redcliffe, a business that has grown into a global corporation. The couple secured a £445,000 funding package from NatWest to purchase the existing convenience store and post office and carry out their expansion plans.
New owners have ambitious expansion plans for the store and post office in Failand – photo courtesy of NatWest
“As residents of Failand, we saw the opportunity to create an accessible and family-run community hub – somewhere to have a coffee, support local businesses and somewhere that we would enjoy spending time,” explains Ryan.
“Thanks to the funding from NatWest, we were able to purchase Failand’s dated store and post office, then begin transforming it in line with our vision.
“At the heart of everything is investing in the community. We want to serve the local people, including offering deliveries to the retirement village nearby, as well as provide a place for visitors exploring the surrounding countryside. We hope that Honey & Ginger will prove a great success, and this might, one day, be a model that we can replicate, creating valuable community cafés and shops in other villages.”
The new owners are already running the shop, which is stocked with plenty of produce from local suppliers – photo from Honey & Ginger Facebook page
Over the next two months, Ryan and Lisa will start a phased extension and renovation of the building, adding space for a community café and kitchen, as well as expanding the footprint of the shop. The couple hope to complete renovations and open the Honey & Ginger café in October.
Ryan’s parents, Ian and Lyn, will run the business day-to-day. Customers can also sign up to a subscription package for a small, medium or large weekly supply of essentials available to collect from the shop.
Main photo – the vision for the new Honey & Ginger cafe to be built in Failand – photo from Honey & Ginger Facebook page
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