A Dereham business owner is celebrating after a move to the town centre attracted new customers and delighted those returning.
Helen Winterbone is already reaping the rewards after moving Hawthorn and Bee, which specialises in sustainable living, to the High Street.
The shop is based in the old home of Steptoes, which entered a new era earlier this year after three decades in the same premises.
The move has resulted in a growing customer base, while the amount of stock she can offer, such as dried goods, has also increased.
“We have more space now, more stock and more room to have a wider variety of things and offer more to our customers," said Ms Winterbone.
“A lot of people are pleased there is a shop like this in Dereham, as they had similar shops where they used to live, and they are pleased to see Dereham has a shop like this too."
From 2016, Ms Winterbone sold pet-related goods from her shop, Treat Your Pet Box, on a lane linking Wellington Road with Theatre Street.
However, in 2020, she decided to shift her focus and transformed the business into a shop specialising in gifts for sustainable living, renaming it Hawthorn & Bee.
A year later, she moved 50 metres round the corner to Wellington Road.
And, while she would yearn for a spot in the centre of town, Ms Winterbone would be priced out of move due to high rent and harboured fears of further coronavirus lockdowns.
But thanks to an offer which was too good to turn down, Hawthorn & Bee moved to the High Street in August.
“If we wanted to keep going, we needed to offer more and we couldn't do that in the smaller shop,” added Ms Winterbone.
“We are beside the library which has been good for us. It was the right property and the price was good, but the price in the middle of town was still steep.
“A lot of people didn't know we were in Wellington Road. On the High Street, we are more visible to people here and more people are finding us.
"People who used to come before are really pleased with the wider variety of stock - so it has gone really well."
To find out more about Hawthorn & Bee, visit hawthorn-bee.co.uk.
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