Celebrating Newmarket’s Newest Independent Coffee Shop

Victor Victoria Coffee, a new independent coffee shop opened its doors last month bringing a fresh taste to the racing town.

Moving into the former Coffee & Co location on the corner of Sun Lane and Palace Street, the café opened on Saturday 7th March to a wonderful reception, although it is currently closed during lockdown.

Its new owner, Victoria Snell, is looking forward to reopening and is aiming to continue the sense of community that the café bought to the town.

“The location is a haven for people watching and sitting outside during the summer months,” explained Victoria, “It is a well-known spot and I am creating a real community space where people love to spend time with friends or just enjoy some time by themselves.”

Opening the coffee shop has been a lifelong dream for Victoria. While taking a break from her marketing career to start a family, she pursued her love of baking cakes and sweet treats.

Her business, Cuppa Cakes, supplied local coffee shops and tea rooms, including Coffee & Co and Harriets in Bury St Edmunds and Cambridge. When she saw that Coffee & Co was up for sale, she decided to take the leap and open her own venture.

As a local resident to Newmarket, Victoria is keen to support other small businesses in the area.“Our bread is baked daily and delivered from STIR in Cambridge and we use both Eric Tennant and Powters for our meat. We also serve Posh Pops from Cambridge and drinks from LA Brewery near Ely,” said Victoria.

The menu changes daily to feature seasonal dishes. Expect to find avocado on toast and delicious sourdough sandwiches.

“The most surprising item that we can’t seem to make enough of are sausage rolls!” said Victoria, “They are made fresh every morning, but you’ll have to be quick!

“I love our ever-changing cake and brownie menu, but I have to say that I still love a good slice of banana bread. It is so versatile, and we serve it sliced, toasted, with yoghurt and berry compote, with butter for afternoon tea, or on its own which is how I like it best.”

The coffee shop gained its name from Victoria and her father, Victor.

“The name is very personal to me. Growing up we always introduced ourselves as Victor Victoria to make people smile. I wanted the name to symbolise something personal and any other names for the cafe just didn’t sound right.”

Victoria is looking forward to reopening and being able to put a smile back on people’s faces once government guidelines have changed.

“Thank you to everyone who has wholeheartedly supported me and the team at Victor Victoria Coffee and we can’t wait to see you all soon. Take care and keep safe!”

Visit the Coffee Store's website here.

Victor Victoria

Business of the Month: November

Starting life in Newmarket as a family business printing sheet music in the 1860s, Tindalls has become a fundamental part of our high street. Operating with a strong team of 12 staff, the business continues to develop and support the community, which is why we have nominated it as our business of the month.

Following the news that the newsagent adjacent to Tindalls (formerly owned by The Henderson Group) went into administration earlier this year, Director Jamie Gaskin stepped up to ensure that the key services offered by the business continue in our town.

Commenting Jamie said: “The newsagent and ourselves were one business years ago, and whilst it was sold to Hendersons it still had the Tindalls name above the door, so we felt an obligation to try and help it. We have worked with the administrators to try and salvage what we can from the store, and are now working on ways to amalgamate the services together."

Bringing in a series of books and greetings cards into the Arts and Crafts business made sense, whilst also catering for the newsagent’s loyal customers and our town’s needs.

“We’re now going through a period of change, monitoring what’s selling and continuing with the best stock,” explains Jamie. “We’re revamping the store to take into account a selection of greetings cards that we will definitely continue into next year.”

Retaining the strong services offered by Tindalls Arts and Crafts, including a range of stationery, arts and craft materials, the store looks set to flourish. Welcoming weekly artist workshops in both acrylic and watercolour, alongside a very popular children’s art club for children aged 7 and over, there’s always something going on.

Commenting on the store further, Jamie said: “Tindalls has historically been a fundamental part of the High Street. We want to remain here for many years to come, so are evolving to ensure we are. Our focal point is still very much the arts and crafts, and of course our loyal customers whom we’re lucky to have gained over the years.”

Click here to view the current workshop timetable at Tindalls Newmarket.

Tindalls

Business of the Month: October

Celebrating its 10 year anniversary this November, Lemontree Properties has gained our award as Business of the Month. Having opened in Newmarket as an independent business owned by Client Services Director Beth Barnham, the business has continued to flourish and now employs seven local women.

Explaining her decision to open, Beth said: "The Cambridge agent I was working for prior to launching Lemontree decided that it was no longer a viable option to open a branch in Newmarket due to a decline in the sales market.  Consequently they decided to sell it on.

"My husband and I seized the opportunity to buy the small portfolio of managed properties and within six weeks had found an office, hired our first member of staff (who’s still with us today), decided on the company name, sorted all of the branding and commenced with a new property management system.

"It was manic at first getting our heads round everything but with hard work and determination over the following years, we have grown into a highly reputable independent lettings specialist with over 300 managed properties."

Having recently attended our Love Newmarket BID Experience Day at Newmarket Racecourses, Beth commented it was great getting to put faces to names behind the brand.

When asked what the business plans are as we look towards the end of the year, Beth added: "We had our second rebrand recently to ensure that we keep our identity fresh and in front of our competition.  Our new website and pool car reinforces this. We are also always committed to fulfilling our obligations to both our landlords and tenants, which in turn helps us to expand."

We look forward to seeing what the anniversary celebrations entail, but congratulate the local team for reaching such a milestone.

To find out more about Lemontree Properties, click here.

Business of the Month: September

Indian cuisine with a modern twist, Montaz Newmarket definitely made its mark this month, becoming one of the most recommended places to dine in the UK. Listed in the 2020 Waitrose Good Food Guide, the quality ingredients, fantastic team and wide range of dishes has put Newmarket cuisine on the map.

Focusing on a delicate spicing, robust flavours and unique masterpieces, the Newmarket team, headed up by Ziaur Choudrey ‘Ziggy’, were over the moon to be listed saying: “Words cannot explain how happy we are. We would like to thank all of our customers for their support over the years.”

Renowned for its modern interior, the restaurant which opened on Old Station Road in 2011 has recently welcomed a new winter menu this month, with an exciting Supper Club Dinner Event set to preview its launch.

Always looking for new and exciting ways to introduce different flavours and dishes to its customers, Ziggy and his team are proud of the new direction the restaurant is taking, a result of many months’ work by Ziggy, his brother-in-law and nephew. Now running Supper Clubs every six weeks, on a Monday, it’s the drive and determination that make this business the perfect candidate for Business of the Month.

Congratulations on making the 2020 Good Food Guide, and we certainly look forward to the next Supper Club Experience.

To find out more about Montaz visit www.montaz.co.uk

Business of the Month: August

Fish BurwellThe award-winning business, FISH, has a straightforward ethos – to provide the freshest, best quality fish to their customers every day, which is why we deem it worthy of our business of the month for August 2019.

Truly a local independent retailer, FISH Burwell is run by Trisha Bircham and her husband Colin, FISH can be found in the Guineas Centre in Newmarket. You can also find them regularly at Ely Market with their mobile retail unit.

FISH came about after winning the 2010 ‘Strictly Newmarket’ Competition which offered opportunities to independent retailers. Going from strength to strength, FISH Burwell now supplies both independent customers and businesses such as near neighbours The Pantry, with daily fresh fish and accompaniments.

Being based in the Guineas Centre, FISH is a member of Love Newmarket BID. Trisha outlines the benefits she sees of this membership for retailers and businesses within the area.

Trisha says: “I believe the BID has been a good thing for Newmarket. We must remember it is a long-term proposition which will help establish Newmarket as a destination town.  At FISH, we are already seeing more visitors from Cambridge and the outlying villages and towns.  They come to Newmarket for specific purchases and to take advantage of our eateries, open spaces and unique atmosphere. As a BID board director, I know there is more to come from the BID. We are learning every time we hold an event, or suggest a new initiative.  I believe more and more BID members are now tapping into the opportunities the organisation offers to them. The more they do, the bigger the benefits they will see.

“At FISH, we have noticed that when a major event runs in the town such as Christmas or the Forties Day, that although people come to town, we may not make many more sales on the day. We worried about this initially as we expected to see a higher footfall with an instant increase in sales, and higher spending power! However, although people do not want to carry purchases on the day, we noticed an increasing number of sales in the days and weeks after the events. People had noticed our shop and have come back - and keep coming back.

“This year, the board were delighted with the recent independently-run Business Awards.  We saw a high number of entries and business attending, with many more businesses engaging this year.   I am delighted to say that FISH won the Best Lifestyle Independent Award for Customer Service. Initiatives like this can only be good for the retail and business community.  We very much enjoyed the evening and are proud to display our award.”

She added: “We have also profited from the membership cost saving scheme saving money by using the approved BID suppliers. Recently, we have benefited from the link-up between the BID and business advisor, Steve Elsom. Steve visited us as part of the offer of the free ‘Business Inspector’ programme and offered us useful advice and support which we can use to take FISH forward.”

You can find FISH in the Guineas Centre and follow them on Facebook or Twitter.

The Bill Tutte Codebreaker Trail: Final Clues

Today's the deadline for the Bill Tutte Codebreaker Trail! But if you've still not reached the answer, here's one last set of clues:

1. GETTINGCROSS
Seven is a lucky number
Eight is not the answer
Nine might be your guess
Ten could be an option
2. The Lost Roman
IX minus X = I
3. JOCKEYS BIRTHDAY
After this is over he is off to find his golden fleece
4. JOURNEYOFMANYSTEPS
TRACK
TRICK
5. The WORDGAME
“Do I really need to spell it out to you” they said at the house
6. How Many Steps
What will I do with 12 Partridges, let alone 22 turtledoves
7. Which Planet?
Hope you are SAT down ready for the answer
8. Which Door is Safe?
Weirdly he will only eat me if it’s full
9. The MADSCIENTIST
I spell out what is left, you can count on that
10. Numbers and Letters
FOUR  FIVE    SIX
1234   1234   123

Deliver your entry forms to the Codebreakers Post Box, in the Guineas Shopping Centre by this evening (27thAugust 2019). Winners will be announced on 30thAugust 2019. The first person to solve the trail will win £150 of vouchers to spend in the town, and a second place is up for grabs offering £100 of vouchers.

We’re proud to be donating 50% of the profits from this event to support our charity of the year, The GeeWizz Charitable Foundation. The charity helps and supports children and young people across West Suffolk, and is a charity we’re particularly proud to support with all our events in 2019.

Want to know more?

To find out more about The Bill Tutte Codebreaker Trail, click here.