It’s ten years since the Duchy Square Centre in Princetown reopened, and businesses at the centre today say it provides them with everything they need.
We re-opened the centre in 2016 following alterations to the building.
The Duchy Square Centre is currently home to a range of businesses, some well-established and others just starting up.
Among them is Sew Enchanting, owned by Marie Mayor and Geoff Currell. The couple have been running their quilting fabric business in Princetown for 17 years, but moved to the Duchy Square Centre two years ago.
They exhibit at over 20 national shows every year, including at Alexandra Palace and the NEC, but Princetown is home and the Duchy Square Centre is virtually on their doorstep.
Marie Mayor, Manager of Sew Enchanting, said: “What’s really nice about the units at the Duchy Square Centre is they’re warm, modern, inviting, and we’ve got everything available to us. It just made sense really. The environment’s good, you haven’t got traffic queues, and we’re easily accessible.
“We’ve got a great bit of space in here. Our fabrics and patterns and our samples are on show, and upstairs we have our embroidery machine, quilting machines and sewing machines where we make the samples to show people. We do pop open to the general public and let them know we’re open via Facebook and other social media.
“As far as creating a business here, you’ve got everything at your disposal. Any business this day and age has to have more fingers in more pies to succeed. Depending on what your business is, as long as you’ve got your online presence there’s no reason why any business couldn’t make it work here. Because we have those other strings to our bow, we’re happy with how we’re doing and where we’re at.”
The Happy Belly Bakery was only launched just over a year ago by Zelah and Michael Stott after friends in Princetown told them a unit was available at Duchy Square Centre. They’ve become a welcome addition to the centre and in Princetown itself, giving back to the community by donating any unsold goods to the Princetown Food Hub.
Zelah Stott, Head Baker at Happy Belly Bakery, said: “I didn’t look as far as the first year; I just hoped everybody liked our sourdough, but it has exceeded our expectations. We have a lot of locals that come to us, and we also do a lot of wholesale to local villages and shops.
“I was baking sourdough loaves at home and I used to work at a sourdough bakery. Some friends in Princetown who live very close to Duchy Square said ‘you should open a bakery’, so that’s how we came to be here really.”
The location seems to be working out, with Zelah taking on a bakery assistant last November, and there are plans to expand the bakery.
“Happy Belly Bakery is a 100% sourdough bakery,” added Zelah. “We’re the only bakery in Princetown. There’s nothing else like us here, and we’re close to lots of little towns and villages so it’s easy to do deliveries.
“There’s a longer term plan to be based in Princetown, and hopefully have a shopfront one day. But I do believe if it wasn’t for Duchy Square Centre we wouldn’t have had such a good start as we’ve had.
“It’s really helpful having Geoff and Marie next door and Shane and others down the other end because it’s a real sense of community. They’ll pop over and we help each other. It’s nice to have others in the building, especially in the winter months.
“I would say to anyone considering opening a business at the Duchy Square Centre that it’s a great move, and it’s really good for start-up businesses.”
GP Service, which sells and services fire extinguishers and PAT Testing, started in 2007 and had been looking for premises around Plymouth as the company started to grow.
Geoff Pithouse, Partner at GP Service, said: “We’ve been working from home for the last 20 years but the company’s grown, certainly in the last two or three years. We needed to have a proper base where we could store and commission our fire extinguishers, and here at the centre has worked out really well for us.
“We’re from around this area, so we knew the centre was up here. We had a look around and really liked what we saw.
“It’s a great journey to work in the morning and evening. There’s no rush hour traffic. The only thing you do get is the occasional cow sat in the road!
“It’s worked really well for us. We’ve joined the Princetown Business Network which has been great so we’ve been welcomed in the community, and we support local tourism businesses, shops and cafes, keeping them safe and compliant.”
Artist Shane Honey started leasing a unit at the centre in September last year.
As a budding artist at school, Shane’s talent was recognised by her art teacher, but she never continued onto Art College.
Shane rediscovered her love of art when she started painting as part of her recovery from a stroke that she suffered during an operation to repair a faulty heart valve. The stroke affected her left hand side and her right forearm.
The stroke damaged her heart irreparably but she is unable to have a transplant, so she’s fitted with a Left Ventricular Assist Device (LVAD) – which is a small pump attached to her heart.
Having had to give up work, an online art course re-ignited her passion for art, and her artwork started to fill up her home. The unit at Duchy Square provides a good space to display her paintings.
Shane said: “The main benefit of being based at Duchy Square is I get more exposure for my work, but also for me it’s the social side which is very important. I can bring my dog – she may not think it’s that interesting – but she’s extremely good. People come in and see her and it starts up a conversation.
“I had so much of my own artwork at home, and I loved the idea of having a shop, but I knew I couldn’t do that, so I was looking for somewhere where I might be able to get more exposure.
“It’s very rewarding when people buy a picture or a couple of cards because they like them. It gives me a sense of purpose and sometimes I think of my school art teacher Mr Hook, and I think my life had to go this way because he was insistent that I did something with my art. Now it’s the only thing that I can really do successfully.
“It’s helped my life being able to be part of the Duchy Square Centre. It’s been a journey but I think I’m where I’m supposed to be.”
Shane recently featured in this year’s Devon Open Studios. The event, run by the Devon Artist Network, is the largest of its kind in the region, and over 350 artists and makers opened their doors to visitors across Devon.
Councillor Simon Clist, Cabinet Member for Assets and Resources, said:
“It’s encouraging that so many different types of businesses are based at the Duchy Square Centre and it’s wonderful to hear that they all agree that locating there has benefited them. The centre is right in the heart of Princetown and when it reopened 10 years ago, the aim was always to help support local businesses across key sectors, including creative, farming, food, and tourism. I’m pleased to see it is still doing that to this day.”
Businesses who would like more information about the Duchy Square Centre should contact Tom Hancock tom.hancock@norsegroup.co.uk or
Izabela Wrobel izabela.wrobel@norsegroup.co.uk .