Business is booming at Ingleton (From The Westmorland Gazette)

Business is booming at Ingleton

10:40am Wednesday 1st February 2012 in Yorkshire Dales news By Helen Perkins, Reporter

ENTREPRENEURS say a focus on niche markets has led to the expansion of several businesses in a Dales town.

Vintage memorabilia, spe-cialist foods and quirky catering are being offered by traders who hope to make Ingleton a hip hotspot for weekend tourists.

Cake designers Frumenty and Fluffin have moved into a Main Street building with six times more space to meet growing demand for their vintage-themed treats.

Shirley Dixon, 53, and daughters Lesley Pelter, 32, and Samantha Sherwin, 25, have seen their bakery business boom since it started three years ago.

They expanded their services to offer extra-vagant wedding cake des-igns, as well as vintage tea cups, plates and saucers.

Mrs Dixon said: “People aren’t reporting good trade nationally, and we’re exc-ited that we’re bucking the trend.

“We want this as a weekend destination for people, so we’ve tried to find our own niche.”

Meanwhile, neighbouring greengrocers Greengages has been taken on by a husband-and-wife team who hope that a focus on gluten-free will win them new custom. Vince McKenzie, 52, and wife Hazel Smith moved from Lincolnshire to dev-elop the business.

Mr McKenzie said: “We saw the business was for sale and decided to move here because it’s such a great area. The strong state of businesses on the high street gives me confidence that we’ll do well.

“To set ourselves apart we’ve focused on everything possible for people who want gluten free, as well as selling the usual groceries and vegetables.”

Fellow business entre-preneur Gaynor Brown, 49, who runs Ingleton’s Old Bank Emporium, said the town was marketing itself on its individualism.

She said: “Everyone wants to make this a good weekend destination by giving their shop an edge. We’ve found nostalgia has been a really popular theme. People are interested in 1940s.

“Since I opened this business, in April last year, 25 dealers have moved in, trading nostalgic pieces, and they are doing well. Now we’ve started running vintage fairs in Kirkby Lonsdale too and that seems to be going strong.”