21 COMMERCIALISATION The retail factor The Mall has chosen its retail start-up of the year for 2011 A
new business launched by local mother, Sophia Patel at The Mall Blackburn has been announced as the national winner of The Retail Factor 2011. “Cupcakes & Cookies”,
Sophia’s made-to-order bakery business, was picked from over 86 entrants across the UK to take the title in the nationwide competition. The Retail Factor competition, designed to find the retailers
of tomorrow, welcomes budding businesspeople to try new retail business ideas on an RMU in the centre for a two-week trial trading period. The winner at each of the eleven nationwide shopping centres is rewarded with a start-up package that includes two months’ free trade at the centre, a laptop and business mentoring from the National Skills Academy. Sophia’s “Cupcakes & Cookies” triumphed over all eleven local
winners to become the competition’s national champion for 2011, winning a place on the coveted retail business course at the BHF- BSSA Oxford Summer School. “It’s so exciting to have been picked as the overall winner; my business has taken off like a rocket and I’ve had such a fantastic response to my cakes and cookies from the moment I began
trading,” says Patel. “Sophia was awarded the prize for her impressive sales figures,
her genuine business passion and her eagerness to grow her business,” adds Mark Bourgeois, managing director of shopping centres at The Mall. “Her forward thinking and ability to adapt her business to customer demand has made her an instant success at The Mall Blackburn and I pass on my congratulations to her for this much deserved win.” Sophia’s business has now grown sufficiently to warrant the
purchase of a commercial oven and the conversion of her garage into a bakery for her ever-growing list of orders. With customers purchasing up to 530 cupcakes, each decorated by hand and individually gift boxed with ribbon, Sophia is now seeking a new member of staff to support her as “Cupcakes & Cookies” continues to flourish.
She is continuing to trade in The Mall’s new Blackburn Market.
Find out more: For more information, please contact the author:
mia.hunt@
jldmedia.com
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