Indulgence, Newton Abbot’s new vintage tea room, opened its doors for the first time earlier this month. Opportunity Plus sat down with owner Ross James Booth to talk about how he started the business and some of his plans for the future.
“Indulgence is not your run of the mill coffee shop. I want it to be somewhere relaxing. Somewhere people can come for an afternoon tea and meet up with their friends, or just sit and read a book and quietly chill out.”
Ross has had the idea for his café for a long time now. He’s just been waiting for the right opportunity to come along. “It’s always been in the back of my mind. It’s one of those things that you think you’ll get round to doing at some point, but then things happen and circumstances change and you think actually, I’ve got to just make that jump and go for it.”
While Indulgence is his first business Ross is by no means a stranger to running a café, having previously worked in a vintage tea rooms in Torquay and as the assistant manager of the Bickley Mill. He’s also had some experience of setting up a business and two years ago helped his friends to open Inspirations – a home and kitchenware shop in Brixham.
“I lived in Sydney for a year when I was 18 and that’s where my love of good quality coffee started. In England it was just percolated coffee, sat there stewing all day, whereas you go to Australia and it’s proper Italian coffee. You can really taste the difference.”
Ross explains that a key factor for starting his business was finding the right location – somewhere with a good footfall that also fitted his own idea of how the shop should look and feel. Being based in Torquay, Ross was initially looking for somewhere a bit closer to home, but after doing some research decided that Newton Abbot was the perfect place to open his café.
“It seems to be quite an up and coming area. It’s definitely changed. There are hardly any empty shops now and there’s a lot of building work going on, new houses and shops, so it’s all really positive.”
Tucked away in Devon Square, Ross was initially drawn to the former florists by its large double windows and central location. “I’d been working at the Bickley Mill for about five months when I noticed this up for rent and I just jumped at it. It took a while to negotiate, but then all of a sudden things started to happen really fast. One week I was negotiating, the next week I had the keys.”
In just under a fortnight Ross has completely transformed the shop – knocking down a wall, redecorating the interior and sourcing all the necessary furniture and equipment to start trading.
Now the business is up and running and Ross is starting to think about the future. So what’s next for Indulgence?
“The next step is to take on a couple of members of staff. I’m just testing the water at the moment, seeing how busy it is and trying to build up awareness. I’ve done a bit of advertising, and I’m going to do more, but I think it’s important for people to advertise by word of mouth rather than paying lots of money for expensive adverts. I’m getting the facier boards done on Monday so that should help to draw people in.”
So what advice would Ross give to somebody thinking about starting their own business?
“Just go for it. Do your research and go for it. It’s very difficult sometimes because you’re always going to get people who are negative, but you have to just go with your gut instinct. If you’ve got a good idea then just go with it. You’ll never know until you try.”
41 Devon Square,
Newton Abbot,
TQ12 2HH
07743 852010
Thinking of starting your own business? Why not check out the range of business start-up courses available with Opportunity Plus. They are full of ideas and inspiration for a range of business ideas, as well as all the information you need to get up and running.
To find out more visit www.opportunityplus.org.uk or give us a call on 0800 043 2440.
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