Guy and I met whilst living down in Sussex. We were both working in retail management and both keen to make the move towards self employment and a less ‘corporate’ working environment. Having spent a fair amount of time brainstorming potential ideas, we realised that between us both we had probably exhausted around 50+ Roly’s Fudge Loyalty Cards, from the Brighton branch. The answer had been under our noses (and in our bellies!) the whole time.
Roly’s essentially offered everything we were looking for. Independence, whilst providing us with the ‘toolkit’ for running a pantry under an established and well respected brand. The business model just clicked with us. Fresh ingredients, zero food wastage, retail theatre and a handmade artisan product. These were things we were already passionate about.
We spent a year looking at 18 different towns and cities, from the Highlands of Scotland, to the Sussex Coast. When not in work, we were to be found on a plane, train or off in the car scouting. It had to be right, and we knew just what we were looking for. On reading that Lincoln’s Steep Hill had just received ‘UK Street of the Year 2012’, off we set. We offered on the unit the very same day and before we knew it we were adopted ‘Yellow Bellies’ (Lincolnites) and opened Roly’s Fudge Lincoln in March 2013.
Eighteen months later we found ourselves passing through the Peak District National Park, and decided to stop for a wander around Bakewell town centre. It was immediately clear that a Pantry would work here and we set about earmarking ideal units should they ever come up. We spoke to local traders and left our details. We received a phone call a few days later informing us that our first choice unit was due to come onto the market that day. We lept at the opportunity and opened Roly’s Fudge Bakewell in September 2014.
To avoid the case of ‘too many cooks’, I made the move into the Peak District to manage the Bakewell store, and Guy took on the role of managing the Lincoln store. Allocating the day-to-day management of the stores in this way, whilst each retaining ownership, meant we could each maintain a professional identity but at the same time have a buddy for support.
As Bakewell was approaching its first anniversary we started looking again at York, which had always been on the back burner from our initial scouting. We were determined to secure this flagship store in the ‘Confectionery Capital of the UK’, and knew that having a Pantry here would be a good move for the brand identity in the North of England. We secured a property on the historic ‘Shambles’, and opened Roly’s Fudge York in July 2015.
Having three stores has now meant that Guy and myself have been able to step back, fully staffing the shops and taking on more of a district management role. This kind of flexibility and freedom would simply not have been afforded to us in our jobs prior to Roly’s Fudge. Fudge has completely changed our lives and we are immensely proud to be Roly’s Fudge franchisees. Our only word of caution would be… the fudge is moreish, but store openings are addictive.
Perhaps, in the spirit of the Roly’s Fudge Loyalty Card where customers get a free 100g of fudge after five visits, opening five stores will see us get a free one. Will try floating that idea at the franchisee meeting in January!
Since this case study was written, Guy and Greg have now opened their fourth shop Bowness-on-Windermere in the summer of 2016, and continue to manage the four shops while looking for more shops. Maybe they’ll hit the five store mark soon and test that ‘five stores’ loyalty card idea!
