The Plastic Audit

Milk From Horrington Milk Hut, just one off the changes we are making to reduce our plastic usage.

We are a humble coffee and health food shop in a little town in Somerset called Shepton Mallet, people live here, people pass through here and people visit here. The footfall in our little town is low, with Mendip District Council refocusing the centre of town up by the retail park. The retail park is crammed full with well known brand names, whereas the high street still retains a certain innocence, there is still a bakery, some really good places to hang out for coffee and some cool vintage shops. The high street is worth a visit for it's quirkiness and character. It is a very different shopping experience and I would say it is a cheap place to shop, cheap and friendly. We also have a little market on a Friday, with fruit, vegetables, bread, meat and other local traders and we have a much bigger Sunday Market on every 3rd Sunday of the month, this is when the town really comes alive and all those people that were so busy working on the other days of the week are able to come and enjoy spending their money in their local community. It's so special that people even make the effort to visit from further afield.

So, that's a bit of a background to the location of our shop, just an independent shop on a very independent high street, driven by the passions and obsessions of the owners and what has captured my imagination is the challenge to reduce our reliance on plastic and to reduce the amount of it that we send out into the world as post-consumer plastic.

When we first opened 9 years ago, originally in Enfield on a train station platform, one of our main aims was running a sustainable business and we have stuck to that ethos and we hardly produce any waste. Gardners love to take our coffee grounds, we recycle or reuse our cardboard boxes, we make sure that we recycle our bottles, compost our food waste and so on, it takes weeks to produce a bin liner of rubbish but wouldn't it be great if there was no bin liner of rubbish and wouldn't it be great if the world saw everything as resources rather than rubbish?

Reducing Plastic in our Business and Post-Consumer waste

I have been going through the items that we sell and working on reducing our plastic and day by day making little changes. It is a matter of slowly transferring and changing but some things have been cut with no transition. So here is a list of the things we have done so far recently to try to reduce plastic usage in our business, or to reduce the amount of plastic that is released into the world post-consumer.

Washing up liquid is available on tap for you to fill your own bottle with and reuse.

Extra Virgin Olive Oil is available on tap for you to refill your own bottle with.

Dr Bronner's Castile Soap Bars are in stock, they have up to 18 different uses from washing your hair to even, if you are brave enough, brushing your teeth.

We don't use plastic straws, we use stainless steel straws in people's smoothies and fruit juices.

Stainless Steel and Bamboo Straws are available to buy.

We sell Bamboo Reusable Coffee Cups, with a 20p discount off your hot drink when you use your own cup.

We recycle any of our paper cups that have been used and left with us and we will be using plant made cups in the future, if people still need take out cups and lids.

We recycle any tetra packs that we use and make sure we pass on information to our customers, where they can recycle theirs after use.

We have stopped buying in products that have the misleading arrow symbol on them that looks like you can recycle the packaging but actually you can't and it just means the company has paid a subsidy.

We have sourced local milk that is supplied in refillable glass bottles and are phasing out our milk in plastic bottles, if this goes well.

We are committed, in future, to buying items in bulk that we usually store on our shelves in small packets and refilling your jars and packets with them instead. We are transitioning at this time. Lentils and buckwheat flour are already available like this.

Herbs and spices are now available for you to fill your own jar for 50p (Unless it is a very expensive herb or spice, then the price will be higher), or you can use one of our jars and it will be 70p. If we haven't got what you want, we will order it in.

We used to buy flapjacks in wrapped in plastic, they are now made by us everyday. They are vegan, gluten free and have no sugar in apart from the dates and bananas used in the very simple recipe.

We have teabags that don't have plastic in BUT they still come presented with a plastic film around the cardboard carton. Yogi Tea have been brilliant and don't have plastic in their teabags or around them.

We sell Toilet Rolls in home compostable film, made with plants.

We have If You Care parchment baking paper, that can be used again and again and can be home composted.

Our take out bags for cakes and toasties are paper bags with a home compostable film window.

Our customers are expected to use their own bags, or use a box from us, if we have one to hand, for their shopping.

We will continue to buy in things to order, if you want them but we will contact the manufacturer to remind them to update or change their packaging, if it is made of plastic, especially non-recyclable plastic.

Future Aims to Reduce Plastic in Our Business and Post Consumer-Waste

We want to buy our coffee in sacks, not in plastic bags but I still want it to be fairly traded and organic.

We want more fresh fruit and vegetables for people to snack on spontaneously, instead of wrapped in plastic snacks. The fruit and vegetables must be sourced from local and independent wholesalers, so that we can make sure that more of your pound stays circulating in the local community.

We want to write to the companies where I think the products are good, it's just a shame about the packaging to ask them to change it.

We have written to St Paul's School to ask if they will be come a collector of old writing materials in our area.

We will take responsibility for the plastic that we still have in the shop and take it off for the customer and recycle it, or if not able to be recycled, send back to the manufacturer of the product with a note to ask them to change their packaging.

We will continue to reduce the amount of things we buy which use plastic, especially once use plastic.

We will continue to research the best way that old plastic can be used and look at the details of what we are doing through internet resources and information.

We will continue to be transparent in this subject and to share with our customers what we are doing and the blocks we are experiencing in making changes.

We will stop buying hand towels wrapped in plastic and will either use kitchen rolls in compostable film if we can find some,  or we will use old but clean rags for spillages and cleaning.

Instead of plastic sponges we will source loofah sponges for cleaning, from our supplier and we will also stock them in the shop.

We are looking to find a wholesaler for tiffin boxes, so that you can use them for take out food, not only from us but from other local outlets.

Turning Back the Plastic Tide

It is hard and it is challenging, to make these changes. When I look around me at the world we live in and I see the amount of plastic we are surrounded by in our everyday lives, I feel very sad and upset and I really don't know how we can make a difference, when even as I write this, there is a factory somewhere, churning out plastic things. I think the people that have seen the light and know that this just can't go on feel very passionately about this and we do have to do what we can as each individual do, to reverse the plastic tide! So, whether you take one step, or several steps, it is worth doing. We have to do it, this is the only way we can communicate to the decision makers, to the manufacturers, to the factory owners. Our little actions together, will make big changes. Sometimes it can feel hopeless and it can feel futile and it can feel very overwhelming, especially as a business owner to try to make those changes but in it's turn, it can also feel empowering.

I have been inspired by other people in my community to make bigger changes and more focused changes, so hopefully, we can keep inspiring each other and sharing ideas and good practices. I am not saying it is easy, it isn't and it can feel very challenging in a mental health kind of way, like an I'm turning into a crazy woman type of way and the worst thing is the guilt but we just have to keep thinking positively and thinking about what we can do and what we have done to make things better and that is why I have done a plastic audit in my business and my home.

Please let me know about the changes you have made and the solutions you have found to the plastic problem.

Thanks for reading. xx

10 Good Reasons To #SupermarketSwap Now!

Nigel: Serious about #SupermarketSwap

I am right in the middle of reading a very informative book about Supermarkets and the amount of power they have over the food industry and how the more we spend in them, the more power they have and the less choice we have.

The book is called Shopped. The Shocking Power of British Supermarkets and is written by Joanna Blythman, a leading investigative food journalist. The book was written in 2004 and things have disintegrated a lot further since then! Take for example two pieces of news this week,

The first being that Sainsbury's have announced in a meeting with Fairtrade Farmers, that they are going to create their very own brand of Fairtrade, their own Fairtrade label and they will put in force their own regulations and monitor themselves. The Fairtrade Farmers are extremely concerned that there will be no Fairtrade premium and that there will be no minimum guarantee and that the public will be confused about what Fairtrade is really about. Supermarkets take the Fairtrade Logo and use it on some of their products and yet happily screw their British suppliers into the ground by negotiating lower prices retrospectively and other massive companies like Nestle, will put a Fairtrade logo on some of their products and yet insist that access to clean water is not a human right and tempt African Mums to bottle feed instead of breast feed!  So, from taking small steps to support the ethos of Fairtrade, the supermarkets are now beginning to do what they usually do, take someone else's great idea, let that someone else pay for all the development that goes into it and then just do it themselves, where the only way they measure their success is profit and the bottom-line, rather than any ethical aim, or the long-term viability of a community, or of the world.

The second piece of news is that Tesco would like to buy out Booker Wholesale. Booker Wholesale actually supply independent shops across the UK! It doesn't take a genius to work out that this is going to make it virtually impossible for any independent using Booker Wholesale to be able to fairly compete with Tesco. Tesco has this week asked the Monopolies Commission if they could possibly speed up the investigation into whether they can go ahead with the transaction or not. Some board members have resigned over this idea and not one shareholder has been heard to show any enthusiasm over the idea, from reports online.

10 Good Reasons To #SupermarketSwap Now!

1/ You'll spend money on local traders who will pay tax, if they earn enough and then in turn will spend their money on other local businesses in the community, thus contributing far more to the local economy per pound than any supermarket.

2/ You'll enjoy a more personal service, where the number one aim is not necessarily to make a profit but to create a long term relationship that is a win/win situation for everyone, the supplier, the business and the consumer.

3/ No long queues. Mainly because everyone is standing in the supermarket queue and not in the independent shop's queue!

4/ You'll buy little and often, which is much better as there is less food waste and buying in an independent means you are less likely to over buy and over spend on stuff that you didn't want anyway. Read more about the waste generated by supermarkets, in an article by Joanna Blythmann, the Journalist who has written the book I am reading at the moment!

5/ It's good to support a local family that you know personally and you know they are getting your money, rather than a few directors at the top of a chain, that already have lots of money.

6/ You can ask an independent trader to get an item in that you specifically require and they will do their utmost to get it in, or point you in the right direction to another independent business.

7/ Each independent shop has it's own unique atmosphere that lends a unique character to our high streets across the UK. A local shop has its own individual brand of personality that stems out from the proprietors running them. A supermarket is a clinical practical place, there is no joy in Supermarket shopping,for most people. Going into an independent shop is a whole experience in itself, you connect with the shopkeeper at least and even with the other customers. Which leads onto my next point...

8/ Community! A good high street filled with independent shops, like the one we have in Shepton Mallet is an easy way for individuals to access the community, without actually knowing anyone in the first place.

9/ To promote choice. If the supermarkets have a monopoly, they can then charge as high as they like prices to the consumer and pay as low as they like prices to their suppliers. Every time you make a concerted effort to divert your spending into a local business, you are helping to shape the high street.

10/ Supermarkets want you to see them as the answer to your shortage of time and sell you pre-made meals at a premium but it really only takes a few minutes to create a dish from scratch with fresh ingredients bought from your local market, or shop. If you buy smaller amounts less often but better quality and containing better nutrition, those cheap rows of custard creams and fizzy pop look less and less attractive, especially when we take into account the unaccounted for costs to our environment, our health and our communities.

In Shepton Mallet high street, we have the Friday Market every Friday and independent shops up and down the high street, as well as some great charity shops too. Now is the time, more than ever to make one small change to your shopping habits. I am not saying that you should completely drop your supermarket shop, I am just saying try to challenge yourself and make a small change. When you are in a supermarket or chain, put just one thing down and come and get it on the high street instead.

When you find yourself in my shop, ask yourself what you can get from us that you would normally get from the supermarket and get it from us instead.

If you don't find what you want, order it in, talk to us about it! If you don't have the time to come in, tell us what you want and we will bring it round to you.

We can all decide that it's not worth taking up the challenge, we can all decide to keep shopping in the supermarkets and we can let our high streets slip away but we have to do something to challenge the way things are, the cost of your food is not just the price you see on the label, it's the price you pay with your health, your children's health, the well-being of our community and of our world!

You have the power of the pound in your pocket, please use it wisely.

#SupermarketSwap!

Today, it was the General Election and that made me think about the way people vote, whether tactically, or with their heart, or any other method they choose. I thought about how important voting is and then I thought about how we vote with the pound in our pocket for the shops that we want on our high street, every single time that we go shopping and every single time we buy something.

When we first moved to Shepton Mallet, I was riding on the crest of a wave of organising over twenty one Shock Cash Mobs in the Enfield area, where at least £100 was re-directed in the course of each mob into the businesses of local traders. The Shock Cash Mob campaign captured the headlines in our local press, when we were based in Enfield and even resulted in TV and Radio interviews and the idea spread across the UK, with copy cat Shock Cash Mobs being set up by others independently of me!

Then when we moved to Shepton Mallet, we discovered there was less disposable income and people were not able to just traipse into a store waving their tenners and buying lots of goodies and there were just less people in general, available to join in this mad and merry scheme. I like to go with the flow and not flog a dead horse, so I stopped that and I have been keeping my mind open to something else. Something that I could do in my business, as an individual, that would help already loyal customers and friends to make sure that we make a profit and we are still around in the months and years to come and today, I realised that I have been doing just that very slowly and redirecting money that might have been earmarked for a supermarket, into our little store instead. I don't know if you already know but in the 6 months up to the beginning of this year, we only broke even. There were no wages for us, we were depending entirely on our tax credits and also on housing benefit. We are still in the same situation but we are now tweaking things and we will start making a profit. We would love to be able to pay our own way, at least starting off by being able to pay our rent for our home.

Over the nearly four years that we have been open here in Shepton Mallet, some of our customers have noticed that they can enjoy supporting us even more by choosing something that they might usually buy from a supermarket and getting it from us instead. Maybe a bar of chocolate, maybe a some Miso Soup, maybe some tea bags, maybe a specially made up gift basket. We generally try not to stock exactly the same things as a supermarket, as we are here to fill a gap in the market, a certain niche, however, there is a little overlap here and there and supermarkets do go and check out what local stores are selling and if successful, they then stock those items. So, we always have to be one step ahead and one of the things I love doing is researching new products and recipes and visiting trade shows! 

I am creating a campaign that will not only help me and my shop but that others in Shepton Mallet can replicate and perpetuate. It is a simple campaign that hinges on the use of a hashtag phrase, that we can use across Twitter, Facebook and Instagram and generate support from our loyal customers and remind them to spend mindfully and to support their community directly by swapping at least one thing they would usually buy from a supermarket, to buying it from a small, independent and local business instead! It's not a case of totally abandoning the supermarkets either, they are there, they provide employment, they are convenient, they fill their own gap that a small family business cannot fill in the same way. I believe there is room for the big corporations and the little businesses too. This is not a fight, it's more about making people aware of their choices and the power they wield with that little shiny pound coin, I do especially like the design of the new ones!

We will be the first shop in the UK to launch #SupermarketSwap on 9th June 2017, on the very day that the election results are known. We know that as other independents in Shepton Mallet see how we increase our sales, they in turn will make use of the phrase #SupermarketSwap and encourage their customers to divert their pounds into their local store instead of habitually spending in the supermarkets and chain stores! 

Any small, independent, local business is free to take this campaign and use it for themselves, please comment here and let us know how you are doing.

If you know a small business owner, please share this blog with them and let them know about the power of the #SupermarketSwap.

If you are a small business owner, please use this phrase and share with your customers what you have that other people could drop from the supermarket and pick up from your shop!

#SupermarketSwap 

Get it from your local shop!

We are just saying that if you are in a supermarket, put one item down and get it from your local shop. If you are in a local shop, think about your shopping for the week, what do you need to get? What meals are you making, what clothes do you need, what gifts do you need? Then get one more thing than you usually would, from that little shop. That one extra thing makes such a massive difference to the viability and sustainability of that one little business. 

So, even if you might have felt that voting today was hard, or you felt like you might not have made a difference, all I can say is that it is really important to vote and it is really important too, to realise that you get to vote about the changing face of your high street and your local economy nearly every single day.

Don't forget to vote!

Update 27th June 2017:
Thank you to The Shepton Mallet Journal for covering this story!

Powerful and Passionate Protest Comments to Support Library Petition!

I started the Leave our Library Alone petition with just my own voice. I do have a habit of saying out loud what everyone is thinking, which usually causes some offence and is generally something I have to try hard to control but when it comes to creating a petition, that's when my weakness is a strength. I write it from the heart and write what I feel is my truth and if people agree with it, they sign the petition, it's as simple as that. A petition isn't just about what I as an individual think, it is a tool to accumulate power for our collective voices to be heard and that's why, I think that if you sign a petition, it's really important to write your own personal comment about what you think about the issue. A petition isn't always a perfect document and society is of course made up of many individuals, each with their own story or angle on the situation. The petition I have created isn't a list of perfect wishes of mine, that need to be magically turned into reality, it's a starting point to attract like-minded individuals, to campaign for what our town needs and to encourage discussion with Somerset County Council. The people on Somerset County Council are real people too, they are not some ogres and I truly believe that when they understand how much our library means to us, in the position it is, that we can come together and create a solution. Nope, I don't know what that solution is but that doesn't mean that I can't campaign against something that is just plain wrong!

So, the petition that I created has three main points:

1/ For our library to be left where it is at the heart of our town.

2/ For opening hours to be longer.

3/ For staff to be supported by automation and not cut because of it.

In just a few days, the campaign has been gathering momentum and there are several powerful comments already on the petition which is just about to reach the 400 signatures landmark!

Please join your voice with ours and get our message heard:

Please sign and comment on the petition, here. 

Please share this article on Facebook and encourage your friends and family to sign too.

Thank you so much for all your support so far.

Here are some of the other voices joining the protest.

It's a vital resource for the community, and should be kept in the centre of the community.

Mary Boston, Cranmore, United Kingdom

I do not think that Mendip will be happy until the whole of Shepton has become a dormitory town with only the shops at the top of the town to serve the town. This is a beautiful town and yet the agenda of Mendip is a brain teaser. LEAVE the library where it is, at least when people go there then they are passing shops who may benefit from a visit from them also, if it is at the top of town in Mendip then what is the point?

Lindy Wilson, Glastonbury, United Kingdom

Libraries AND librarians are a wonderful resource that help reduce crime, improve social mobility and make people happy especially older people and children

Helen Clemence, Shepton Mallet, United Kingdom

Libraries are important for the future of our children and should be kept in the heart of the town

Norma Frood, Shepton mallet, United Kingdom

A library is an investment in the future of our grandchildren. The heart and soul of a community passionate about learning.

Tony Conway, Shepton Mallet, United Kingdom

The library should be at the heart of the community and we have the same problem in Church Stretton, Shropshire and we took the Council to court using judicial review of the location decision and the council conceded that its action was unlwawful

John Whitelegg, Church Stretton, United Kingdom

I work at Shepton Mallet Infants School and our children use the library, if it moved they would not be able to walk there

Pet White, West Pennard, United Kingdom

I love the staff in Shepton Mallet library - they are so friendly. The library is a hub of the community where people can meet and be sociable. It also encourages shoppers in to the High Street to support the small local independent businesses.

Amanda Stone, Polegate, United Kingdom

Having the library on the high street has been a godsend on rainy days when my children were little and I still visit regularly with my youngest. Plus, books are great and where best to have them than in the middle of the town! If we take everything out of Shepton what are we going to be left with? A town that is soulless.

Francesca Lenzi, Shepton Mallet, United Kingdom

, 

A library is a pivotal part of a town. It needs to be central like the market cross!

Dr Douglas Simper, Radstock Somerset UK, United Kingdom

, 

Leave our Library Alone!

have the opening hours of the library in Shepton Mallet Town centre have already been cut, to even less than than the short hours that were already in place BUT plans are being discussed about:

1/ Moving the library from the centre, to the so called 'Hub', on the edge of our town.

2/ Automating it, so that it is a self-serve facility. 

You know what, one day, they will tell us that it's all available online anyway, so why on earth do we need to pay rent for buildings to house books? Slowly, slowly and then not so slowly they are taking away and eradicating our library.

Please support our campaign and sign the online petition.

Why should our Library stay in the centre of our town?

In my mind the library is the cornerstone of all education. Reading is one of the most important life skills that we will ever learn, it is one of the most honourable pursuits of your time. Once we learn to read, we can learn almost anything because there is probably a book for every subject under the sun. Isn't it incredible that we can even learn another language just through the pages of a book. Reading is at the forefront of our education system, it is the backbone of our learning and the main centre of reading needs to be right in the forefront of our minds and in front of our eyes too. A library is a place to be proud of, standing where it is, right by our majestic looking Market Cross. Right in the centre of our town where it is easily accessible by everybody. 

The Friday Market is coming alive again and more and more people are enjoying this part of our town and altering their lives to either work in the market, or come and visit the market and then taking a look in the library, is an easy and natural progression of those visits.

Having the library in the centre of town reminds us to go and to use it. There is no way that such an important part of community life should be hidden away in the council offices.

I understand that in these economically difficult times we have to make cutbacks and sacrifices and we have to think sensibly about how we use our money. Maybe it is just not viable to pay the costs of a separate lease, when the library can be housed more cost effectively in the council's own buildings. However, maybe it is the council buildings that are in the wrong place and not the library! I understand that a few years ago, the council buildings were in the centre of town. Why did that change? Why make one mistake and then because of that mistake make another one and another one? In the short term moving the library will mean cheaper running costs. In the long term, a Library that is hidden away and automated sends out the message that reading is not important in our society, it is not worth investing in the future of everyone who lives in Shepton Mallet, it is more important to keep costs down. They say that actions speak louder than words, the action of moving the library from the centre of town to the edge of town says loudly and clearly that 'We don't care!' and the written words in books will disappear and not be read or 'heard', those words will be silent.

I taught both of my boys to read and the accessibility and visibility of the library meant that we had support and encouragement and it was very, very easy to incorporate it into our lifestyle. The position of the library is not just about convenience, or about people visiting to be too lazy to walk a little further, it is about the prominence of the library in our every day lives, the profile that it is given, its visibility and the respect that we give it. Moving the library and making it invisible shows us that the service is undervalued and will then be cut completely.

Why should we keep people employed in the Library?

A library with no one to serve us becomes a soulless place. A library isn't just a place to get books, it's sometimes a place to get warm, for someone on the streets, while they read and enjoy talking to someone about something other than their situation. A library for me, is sometimes a respite from the stresses of the outside world and that means the people who work in there too. I am not always in a good state of mind, sometimes I need help to look for a book and I need someone else's knowledge and enthusiasm and recommendation as a guide. Taking the people out of the library is just wrong. Those people are the very essence of the library, their helpfulness and personalities make the library a place that you want to go back to again and again.

Imagine an automated library! That would mean no person to interact with, no one, apart from you, again, to praise your child and encourage them when they choose their first book. No specialised personal knowledge, the knowledge that only comes from life experience and the infectious enthusiasm of another person, the kind of knowledge that can't be gleaned from a computer. There'll be no smile as you walk in, no chat at the desk, no sense of community. No-one for you to speak to, even if it's only about a book, if you've been on your own all day and have no family in the area.

Severing our links with our library is one of the worst ideas that I have heard of since I have moved to this area!

DO NOT MOVE OUR LIBRARY, LEAVE OUR LIBRARY ALONE!

It is perfect where it is, right in the heart of our town. Right where everyone can access it easily. It is appalling that the hours have been shortened, it's appalling that they want to make it self-service and it's appalling that they want to move it from the centre of our town. No, no, no way will I as an individual resident allow this to happen. As individuals we are powerful together.

If you agree with me please like this Facebook Page, please sign our petition.

If you don't agree, come into my shop, buy loads of things and then I might spare a moment to listen to your point of view. 

Moving the library is almost as bad as suggesting Timpson's have a pod at Tesco!

We said 'No'to Timpson at Tesco and they listened!

I received a most delicious phone call yesterday from Fuchsia at Shepton Mallet Journal, telling me the news that Tesco had withdrawn their application for a Timpson pod!



As, at the time of writing, I am not aware of any comments made by Timpson or Tesco, I assume the withdrawal of the application is as a direct result of our online petition, set up in July of this year. The power of well over 500 signatures and over 150 strong comments, combined with great local press coverage by Shepton Mallet Journal, a supportive mention by Kevin McCloud in his Grand Designs Magazine and supportive retweets from local business man and creator of Kilver Court, Roger Saul and his other connections, which attracted more and more support.



Our online petition was set up using change.org, the format of their website was extremely easy to use with really useful articles and tips to help us garner extra support.



This is the first time I have ever set up a petition to campaign against an economic injustice, or any kind of injustice and to think it has been successful, is incredible. A massive thank you to you, if you did anything in any way to support this action!



Now to focus on the changing face of our High Street! Together we can make change.





Shepton Mallet shops triumph as application for Timpson at Tesco is withdrawn | Shepton Mallet Journal

24 hour SHOCK Cash Mob!

I have heard reports that the landlord of Sheels Bookshop in Lancaster Road, has put the rent up by 50%, forcing this Enfield business to relocate to Hatfield instead. We can now see for ourselves that the changing face of the High Street is not just because of changing shopping habits but also the greed of some landlords in keeping rents artificially high in these hard economic times. 

SHOCK Cash Mobs are a small drop in the ocean to help local and independent businesses, just as the BBC Reporter suggested when I was interviewed on TV about this community initiative.

I feel Landlords need to be forced by law, to take responsibility for their community, or even supported by grants and special initiatives to enable them to have filled shop spaces and a fair income in exchange. I don't know what the correct approach would be, as I have never been a landlord, so I need landlords to connect with me and share with me their ideas. After all we are all in this together. Communities are becoming fractured by our broken up High Streets, drastic action and innovation needs to happen now! 

In the meantime, please join me in an online SHOCK Cash Mob for Sheels Bookshop, just over 1 year after the one we did to them in 2013! 

So, for 24 hours from 9am, Tuesday 3rd June to 9am on Wednesday 4th June, pop into Sheels and spend a tenner or more on books! 

Or go online and order.

Or phone up and order.

Please comment to tell me that you are going to do it. Then please tell me when you have actually done it! 

So, who's in? Xxxxxx

Prince Charles and David Vagg invited for a cuppa with Shepton Mallet Town Councillor

So, I've been a Town Councillor in Shepton Mallet, for less than a month and I find myself immersed in a cause that I feel passionately about, working together with other Councillors on the team, from all the parties but especially +Garfield Kennedy who got me involved in this whole thing, in the first place!

Shepton Mallet Town Council and several residents from Tadley Acres have teamed up to oppose the building of over 40 houses on a gorgeous piece of green land, enjoyed by the community for several years and promised to the residents as being earmarked for community use.

This is the story of Tadley Place, as I understand it, so far:

Once upon a time, a beautiful housing development was designed and then created, the people involved in creating the ethos and ideals of this 'Village within a Town' concept, worked intensely hard on creating the dream and bringing it to fruition.

The Prince of Wales' Duchy Estates, our local farmer David Vagg and Bloor Homes, were just some of the stakeholders in this project and it was their hard work and collaboration that created a new housing development with soul and a strong sense of community. This article in Shepton Mallet Journal, 2011, states that, ' More than 90 per cent of the land on which the estate has been developed was owned by local farmer David Vagg.

The rest of the property belonged to the Duchy of Cornwall, headed by Prince Charles.

The site was planned meticulously, with frequent consultations between the Vagg family and the Duchy.

Back in 2001 Robert Adam, project architect for the Duchy of Cornwall, was reported in this newspaper saying: "David Vagg and his family wanted to give something to Shepton Mallet that they could be proud of in years to come.'

In the centre of this amazing. award-winning development, there was a glorious patch of green space, which the residents have enjoyed ever since they first moved in and continue to enjoy this day. This green space was a very special green space as it was contractually agreed that it would be used to build a school, a community centre, or other community asset, or it would not be built on at all!

Unfortunately, promises and contractual agreements seem to have been forgotten when Somerset County Council stated that the site would no longer be required, as no school would be built, as reported in this edition of The Shepton Mallet Journal, in October 2013. The article states that in a meeting on September 10th, a spokesman for CG Fry & Son said: "The site was originally reserved for a new primary school as part of the planning permission and Section 106 Agreement for the wider housing development.

"Somerset County Council has recently confirmed that the site is not now required, so the landowners have quite properly considered alternative uses with a land value to them."

Surely Somerset County Council have made a big mistake, didn't they need to say that the land needed to be kept for community use? This was stated in brochures at the time and residents have told me that they have this land reserved for community use, mentioned in their household deeds!

And look at the website of the Architect Robert Adam, where a village green, new school and community building are all mentioned.

Frustration is now building (did you like that?) for the residents of Tadley Acre, where stones with hardly visible signs on saying 'Private Land' have suddenly appeared and CG Fry & Son, want to push through plans to build 40+ houses on the site, that was originally earmarked for community use. Residents affectionately refer to this area of green land which they have collectively enjoyed for several years as Tadley Place and you can help their campaign by liking their Tadley Place Facebook Page and following Tadley Place on Twitter.

I personally feel the 'Private Land' signs should be replaced with ones saying 'Tadley Place' as in the picture above and have a wonderful picture in my mind of Prince Charles and David Vagg unveiling the new signs, happy that their original vision hasn't been destroyed!

Do you know Prince Charles, or David Vagg? I really would like to have a chat with them both. I was thinking that it would be nice to discuss over afternoon tea.

So, here is my invitation to Prince Charles and David Vagg.


Dear Prince Charles and David Vagg, you are both cordially invited to enjoy a cup of tea with me, maybe even more than one, if we get on well!

I'll provide the fair trade organic Yogi Tea.
Prince Charles, please bring some Duchy Originals biscuits for us to enjoy.
David, I'd like you to provide the milk.

Time and Date to be decided between us.

Location, Either somewhere really posh where Prince Charles is the host, maybe in a farmhouse David, or you could both come along to my little Shepton Mallet coffee and health food shop, if you wish.

Failing that, we could meet at Tadley Place but it might be a bit cold for that.

I look forward to speaking to you both about Tadley Acres and making sure that your vision for a gorgeous community, village-like development is NOT destroyed by building on the green known affectionately by residents as Tadley Place.

RSVP: cllr.k.mercer@sheptonmallet.info

Thank you. xx

If you know how to get this invite to Prince Charles and David Vagg, please do present it to them and let me know.

Are you battling against developers too, what have you managed to do to keep your treasured green spaces?

#Shock #CashMob #Enfield!

Pam, Owner of Ma Battley's with Cash Mobbers and North London Brass!

I'm still on a high, after taking part in the latest Shock Cash Mob! 'What is a Shock Cash Mob', I hear you question.

Well, it's an idea imported from America, the first one I heard of in the UK, was done at Harringay Market. The ones in Enfield have built on the original idea and added a few enigmatic twists.

The main idea is to boost local independent businesses. Around 10 people arrange to meet up and each one of those people brings a tenner. They then descend upon one lucky shop and each person spends their tenner, or even more!

It's a way to inject cash into our local economy and make an independent retailer's day!

Ten CASH MOBS are being arranged in Enfield, in the run up to Christmas. Two have already been done, the first was at The Village Wholefood Store, the second one which was today, was at Ma Battley's a really cute Sweet Shop, with a very quaint tea room above it.

People pledge their tenners but don't get to know the location of the independent shop, until the night before.Which makes it all very enigmatic and exciting.

Oh and it's a shock for the shop owner, who doesn't know it's happening, until it's happening.

Sweet Sensation!

Today, there was an extra special twist, which was to have North London Brass playing outside the shop. We walked from the fountains outside Enfield Town Library into Enfield Town itself and as we came onto the High Street the brass band struck up some happy tunes! Passers-by were smiling, our tenners were waving and Ma Battley's owner Pam and her staff did not know what on earth was going on!! I don't know who explained but somebody must have done, as she was looking very happy indeed. I was taking photos and telling people outside to go in and spend some cash! The press were there too, taking pictures and Pam must have felt like a star for the day, or at least like it was her birthday.

The special moment for me, was when I looked at Pam's shop and saw all the people browsing and holding onto things that they would buy, prettily packaged confectionery in cellophane, tied up with colourful ribbons, or pick and mix sweets, items that looked like they must be for presents and chocolate and sugar-free sweets,browsing, shopping and chatting, all with jolly music playing outside the shop!

Cash Mob Below, Calm in the Tea Room!

I made my way to the back of the shop, away from the crowd that had now grown with some extra people joining in. I saw the stairs hidden away at the back, you won't notice them if you don't look for them, no flashing neon signs here and climbed up and up, into the Tea Room, that is just above the Sweet Shop. Coming to this place feels just like you're on a seaside holiday, with the olde worlde atmosphere of the sweet shop below and the calm oasis of the tea room above. Pretty pinks and flowers dominate and it just looked so tempting to sneak up there and relax but I thought it would look a little rude, leaving my friends below spending their cash without me! I turned back on myself and prepared myself to shop! Oh Yeah!!!

Permission to Act Like a Kid in a Sweet Shop!

Everyone in that shop had a smile on their face, the owner, the staff and especially the Cash Mobbers! Knowing that we had to spend £10 in this local independent business and that it was a good thing to do, made me feel like a child that had just been given a wedge of pocket money and a free-reign to get what I wanted. This is what I ended up buying:

Two packets of sugar free sweets for Gunter, my partner.

A little chocolate animal for my youngest son.

A packet of Mint Poppets, for my oldest son.

A very cute indulgent chocolate heart, as part of my Mum's next birthday present.

Wine Gums for Nick de Bois because he couldn't come and hopefully when he eats them he will feel encouraged to come to the next one and give Westminster a miss!

2 Halloween bags of Chocolate.

And for me!!! Guess what! I found an incredibly healthy item to enjoy, Liquorice Wood!!!! And it's absolutely delicious.

Ok I admit, I spent a bit over a tenner but that's good, isn't it!!

The reward for doing this, is the buzz you get and seeing the happiness that is spread, the morale being boosted and the profile of the business being lifted, with some press coverage too and plenty of Twitter and Facebook action!

A very big thank you for the Cash Mobbers that pledge their tenners in this way and make this all possible and to the press for coming down to photograph it and also to North London Brass, for making it all extremely entertaining!

If you support this idea, then please show it and let everyone know about it by using the Share buttons below and letting our community know about it, via Facebook, Twitter and the such-like.

Find out when the next one is, here.

Press Coverage!

A big thank you to the following for supporting this campaign, through covering the story!

Click on the links, to read the articles.

The Enfield Advertiser

The Enfield Independent

The Evening Standard

Independent Retail

Business Mum Week!

SHOCK Cash Mob at The Village Wholefood Store!

Did you know...

That from October 1st to October 7th, it was Business Mum Week 2012?

I don't know about you but I'm a Mum and if you're a Mum too, you're probably very busy, if you're a working Mum and especially if you run your own business, then you're probably extremely busy.

That particular week was for me, extremely busy indeed! It's one of those weeks, where I didn't realise, until at the end of the week, when I could relax and allow myself to rest, I looked back and thought, 'That was a busy one!'.

Art Exhibition!

For a start, we had a new art exhibition going up, by Love Light Art, on Monday. The old exhibition had to come down, the new one had to go up, more space had to be made, as there are so many brilliant pictures, just so many of them, there are cards and prints and at the same time a new delivery of goodies came into our shop, that all needed pricing and labelling up.

SHOCK Cash Mob!

At the same time, I was secretly organising a mob of ten people to go into a great health food shop, The Village Wholefood Store, to shock the owner by all spending £10 each and giving a brilliant local independent retailer a boost with finances and some great PR, with the press coming down to cover the story and highlighting Jill Simpson's business! You can find out more about this story by reading my guest blog on Clare Rayner's The Retail Champion Blog, or by taking a peek at the coverage by The Enfield Advertiser!

New Skinny Me Meet Up!

In the same week we were hosting a special event for the participants, or potential participants in the New Skinny Me programme. It was at that point, on Friday, the end of the week that everything seemed like it was colliding together.

Collide!

My 3 year old wasn't feeling his normal self, not ill but just not himself, let's say, not ill....yet! I was meant to be concentrating on the New Skinny Me meet Up but couldn't, everything was coming together, yet colliding at the same time! A lady that I had connected with on Facebook arrived at the same time as the New Skinny Me meeting was still ongoing, with clothes and toys that I was buying from her in preparation for my 3 year old's next birthday and all at the same time as trying to pay money to the lady from the Enfield Preservation Society, for some picture cards of our local area, for the shop. My phone was beeping and bleeping with people responding to posts and pictures of the Cash Mob event and the art exhibition, oh and asking if they would like to vote for me in The Top 100 Mums, Business Mum Awards, by The Mum's Club! And at the same time, I was trying to get an Enfield contact for a journalist, for a story, just to help them out because I reckon, that's what Mums do, isn't it! At the same time, I'm trying to meet up with my brother from America, my sister-in-law and new baby nephew but haven't got not one second to spare, to communicate!

My 3 year old got his cuddles, New Skinny Me ladies, got their guidance from Amrit, The Enfield Preservation society got their money, as did the lady with the clothes and toys and guess what! The journalist even managed to get his contact!! I even got to see my brother and the rest of the family, then my car broke down, with 3 year old in it too. Just remembered that I was covered by my insurance policy, as an added extra to have breakdown cover! 

We were rescued, then I got home and oldest son was very pleased to see me, I was exhausted and needed to clear up the lounge ready for the weekend, whilst Gunter, my partner cooked for us all.

So, that definitely was one busy and exhausting week!

Top 100 Mums!

Today, Sunday, life was a bit calmer, after I had put in a food order to arrive at the shop, for the next day, we all went to and enjoyed the new weekly Crews Hill Market! Towards the end of the evening, I got the children ready for bed, with relaxing baths and washed and combed their hair, got their things ready for school and nursery the next day. At around 9pm, I get onto facebook and get distracted for a few hours, then decide to wind down and get ready to go to bed, as it's 10.30pm. I decide to finish up by reading my emails and deleting the ones I don't need. I open my email up and right at the top, in big capital letters, where I can't possibly miss it, there's an email with the subject starting, 'CONGRATULATIONS!' My heart started thumping, was I one of the Top 100 Mums in the UK, or not?

I opened the email and, read through quickly and this is what it said....

'CONGRATULATIONS! You have been voted into the Top 100 of the Mums Club 2012 Awards!'

I read on and the email told me that it had been Business Mums Week the whole of my very hectic week and the irony wasn't lost on me, that I completely didn't realise purely because I'm a busy Mum!

So to everyone that has voted for me in these awards and made me feel loved, valued and appreciated, I say a mighty big thank you and I will always do my best to share our success, with you! 

Fairtrade Fortnight 2012

Let's Take a Step Together!

I'm gearing up for tomorrow! I have my t-shirt, I have the brochures, I have the stickers, I have the products, I've got the ingredients for cake, yeah, I have my cake and I'm going to eat it and I'm going to make sure that you get some too! And it's all Fairtrade!

Monday the 27th of February, is the start of Fairtrade Fortnight and it runs up to Sunday the 11th of March.

The aim of Fairtrade Fortnight this year is to get 1.5 million steps for Fairtrade registered as actions. so, this Fairtrade Fortnight is to inspire you if you've taken a step before, or if you've never taken a step before! There are so many different steps that we as individuals or businesses can take, they might be small steps but each of them added together can make one big step, to help farmers and they communities in developing countries to receive fairer payments, fairer wages and fairer conditions.

Our Fairtrade Story
When we opened our coffee shop 3 years ago and we made a pledge to ourselves to use only Fairtrade coffee, not to offer a choice but to commit 100% to Fairtrade coffee, despite the tough economic times, we knew that it was the only way that we could feel good running our business. As individuals, our business is an extension of ourselves and what I wouldn't feel comfortable doing in my personal life, I will not do in my business life either. So, yes, we chose Fairtrade coffee, we went on to choose after just a couple of months Fairtrade tea and chocolate and we just kept expanding the amount of Fairtrade that we did, until after just 6 months we bought our own oven specifically so that we could commit to using Fairtrade ingredients in our cakes.

How did this passion for Fairtrade begin? Well, I read about it in a pamphlet from the Fairtrade Foundation, just a month before we opened our coffee shop. I had not heard of Fairtrade before that time. That's what inspired me to create a guide to the independent shops in Enfield that sell or serve Fairtrade, you can pick one up in our shop, or you'll find me out and about during Fairtrade Fortnight, encouraging other individuals and businesses to 'Take a Step' for Fairtrade and I'll have a stack of them with me then, to give out.

You can download our guide to Fairtrade in Enfield, from here!

Fairtrade shouldn't be a unique selling point!
The decision that my partner Gunter Hollenstein and I took, to stock Fairtrade was hardly a decision but more of a heartfelt step that we knew we had to take. Is there really a choice? If you know that one way of trading means that checks have been made, premiums paid and a minimum price band introduced and another means that workers are unable to unionise, that there is no guaranteed price and communities are not given additional help, then why would you, or even could you choose any other way? The Fairtrade labelling system guarantees that the farmers of that product in the developing countries have been given a Fair deal, as specified by internationally agreed trading standards.

I don't want My Coffee Stop stocking a good range of Fairtrade products to be our unique selling point! This is a unique selling point that, I'm wishing wasn't!

I actively encourage and delight in telling other coffee shop owners the excellent Fairtrade suppliers that we've found, so that they can support Fairtrade too and that's why suppliers are listed for everyone to see and use in the Fairtrade Guide that we have produced.

Fairtrade Fortnight Launch!
Just over 6 months after the riots in Enfield, I'll be taking to the very same streets to launch Fairtrade Fortnight in Enfield. I'll be wearing my Fairtrade tee-shirt, armed with stickers, the Enfield Fairtrade Directory and cards on which to register step/s and I'll be encouraging individuals and businesses to 'Take a Step', with me for Fairtrade!'

I'll be starting out at the Civic Centre in Enfield and will work my way up through the high street and back up to  My Coffee Stop at Enfield Chase Station. I'll pick out people and businesses randomly to approach and encourage to 'Take a Step' for Fairtrade, in the hope of helping the Fairtrade Foundation accomplish a grand total of 1.5 million registered steps!

The launch will take place at 10am on the first day of Fairtrade Fortnight, Monday February 27th, outside the Civic Centre, by the chunky Enfield sign.

Keep an eye out for me throughout Fairtrade Fortnight, as you never know when I might appear and ask you to 'Take a Step' with me!

Please Take a Step
I hope this post inspires you to join in and 'Take a Step', when you've taken that step, whatever it is, please register it here!

Please help me to encourage people to 'Take a Step' by sharing this article, wherever you can!
Facebook, Twitter, +1 it if you so desire. Hey! Maybe that can be your step, if you like.

Share this article then register that you shared an article about Fairtrade Fortnight.

As they say, 'Every Step Helps'.

Thanks for any steps that you do take to support Fairtrade Fortnight!

Enjoy!

Karen. xx