A husband and wife team have opened a patisserie in Ipswich town centre after years of working as mobile caterers.
Stuart Calder and Maria Cebrian have opened Bonbon, a chocolatier and patisserie, on Buttermarket this weekend.
Previously as mobile caterers the couple sold their wares via pop up stalls and at festivals, but that market was brought to an end by coronavirus.
MORE: Pub closes as landlords branch out into street food to ‘adapt’ following virus
Mr Calder said: “We went all over the UK. In pop up areas of shopping centres around the UK and at food and drink festivals as well as music festivals like proms in the park.
“But all of that disappeared with coronavirus so we realised pretty quickly we wouldn’t be able to get back in shopping centres and there’s not going to be any festivals, so we opted for looking at shops.
“We’ve had to put all of our own money in because we weren’t eligible for any of the grants because we were mobile before coronavirus and had a shop after coronavirus.”
Everything in the store is made on site, from the 12 varieties of brownies and 30 varieties of cupcakes which are baked in the morning, to the handmade chocolates and cream cheese-filled cannolis.
“We’re more of a patisserie than a bakery,” said Mr Calder.
“When most people in England think of a bakery they think of bread whereas we specialise in high end cakes.
“My wife is the baker – I don’t do that bit – I do the talking and the decorating of the cakes.”
The store will also serve ice cream.
The opening of the store has been delayed by the need to make it Covid-19 compliant.
“The perspex for the screens has been really hard to get hold of. We’ve been through one supplier who couldn’t get hold of it for us, and now we have to make our own brackets and stuff.
“We had to build it all ourselves and do all the shop fitting because all the tradesmen are booked solid.
“We’ve been busy.”
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here