Weave-ing a Wilde spell at Uppermill coffee shop

SETTING up a new business at any time is a challenging experience. Imagine doing it with not one but two national lockdowns on the horizon!

But Thomas and Cal Rowson-Codd have been far from deterred by what has been thrown into their path at Weaver and Wilde.

In fact, they have seen it as something to overcome and have tackled it head on.

And the results from their opening year are there for all to see on Uppermill’s High Street.

They said: “The first year in business is always a challenge. We effectively took on a shell and flipped it to what you see today.

“The main challenge has been operating a hospitality business in the gloom of a global pandemic.

“It has, however, allowed us to focus on implementing a lot of the ideas we had from the outset – sourcing local and seasonally grown fresh produce, expanding our pantry and retail sales and really bedding in to the community we love.

“And we will continue to do this over the current lockdown, as we did with the first.

“We’ve been ‘bending and weaving’ – no pun intended. We’ve had to adapt.

“When we re-opened for dining in, we had 40 per cent of our covers. The reality is on the model we opened with, we’d need 60-70 per cent cover to survive.

“But we’re lucky we’ve partnered with some fantastic artisan producers and that we live and work in such a wonderful community.”

The changes at Weaver and Wilde have been huge.

Not only do they serve coffee, they operate a changing seasonal menu, sell home baked cakes and run a pantry store from which customers can get daily supplies, even plants and soon Christmas trees.

Lockdown means you can buy their produce to take away – from a table outside for the first lockdown – but none of what you see is by accident.They added: “The pantry was part of the plan. Expanding the offer to reflect the changing seasons and the seasonal menu was something we always wanted to introduce.

“We never thought we’d be buying in what the supermarkets couldn’t and selling them on a tressle table – but people needed it.

“There’s a lot we still want to introduce and had planned for April that we’re still sitting on until times are leaner.”

Weaver and Wilde’s food offering has captured the imagination almost as much as the warm welcome and the music selection, which often transports you back to the 1980s.

And when it comes to what people eat, only the best will do.

They said: “We use a well-established wholesaler at Smithfield Market. We know that what we buy is of A1 quality.

“The produce is picked fresh from the farm, delivered to the market and then straight on our shelves or in our dishes.

“Cake wise, Immi’s scones seem to be going down in the history books, we just can’t keep up!

“Others we have very carefully sourced from artisan suppliers such as Alex Flitcroft, who’d beat Mary Berry in a brownie showdown and we’ve just sourced a great new baker from Yorkshire.

“We take a lot of time and energy in ensuring our values align and we’re really proud of where we are with our ranges.”

After just 12 months, Weaver and Wilde has ensconced itself in Uppermill’s community and with Christmas around the corner, ideas are being put together.

The biggest thing they want to say to customers, though, is thank you.

Thomas and Cal said: “We’ve been overwhelmed by the genuine love and support we’ve received. Community is really important to us.

“Gearing up to Christmas, we’ve got some great coffee bits for people to enjoy at home and they make really special gifts along with some other great gift ideas we will be introducing throughout November and December.

“Christmas trees are a great one. We’ve got a really reputable supplier who has been trading for many years.

“We don’t want to reveal everything too early. It’s nice that we can keep introducing new ideas and creating a buzz each time you walk through the door.”