New fruit and veg shop opens in Elland

A new fruit and veg shop has opened on Southgate in Elland.
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The owners have renovated the site of a former hairdressers and physiotherapy shop and decided to turn it into a fruit and veg and wholefoods shop after canvassing opinion from Elland residents about what kind of store they would like to see open.

The shop will aim to be zero waste as much as possible and stock products by local suppliers.The shop front is made from wood reclaimed from the inside when it was being refurbished, the sign has been painted by a retired, local man who used to work for Andy Thorntons, and the inside has been sandblasted.

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The owners also own Unit 2, The Wheatsheaf in Elland and completely refurbished it from a damp warehouse space into their new offices while keeping the building as close to its heritage as possible, such as revealing the original beams in the roof and the original brickwork.

Roots in EllandRoots in Elland
Roots in Elland

They have also acquired the old Cooper Kitchens building and are in the process of transforming that into a new bar and restaurant.

Brett Rhodes, director of Rhodes Joinery & Building Services Ltd, said: “Our company is Elland based and a lot of our staff are also from Elland or live locally.

“Local people and ourselves as a company really want to see Elland brought back to life as it has so much potential to be a busy, vibrant town.

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“We had already purchased and renovated our offices based in Briggate then purchased the old Cooper Kitchens shop to renovate as a new bar and restaurant.

Shoppers at Roots in EllandShoppers at Roots in Elland
Shoppers at Roots in Elland

“It was clear from social media posts on local groups that one of the shops that people missed was a fruit and vegetable shop so after a lot of thought we decided to take that gamble and Roots became a reality.

“Unfortunately, lockdown almost set us back but we have managed to turn around the refurbishment in 6 weeks ready for opening.

“The feedback we have had so far has been brilliant and gives us all hope that it might encourage others to take that gamble and take on one of the other empty shops.”

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Emma Taylor, manager of Roots, said: “It’s a really exciting venture and the feedback has been fantastic.

“We already have some fabulous, independent shops in Elland such as the butchers, bakery, delicatessen, lovely cafes and of course the Dobsons sweet shop.

“The hope is that by adding to that, people will be encouraged to come into the town and shop.

“The whole team got together and realised we could be so much more than just a fruit and vegetable shop and of course we now stock many locally produced produce such as Elland produced raw honey, Ice cream by Just Jenny’s and Dancing Dairies, amazing cheeses from Yorkshire Dama Cheese and the Pextenement Cheese company.

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“We even have locally produced salad items from the Rocket Scientist and also stock preserves and condiments.

“We also wanted to aim for zero waste as much as we possibly can and so we have dispensers for many dry goods such as lentils, flours, pasta etc where people can bring their own containers to fill up.”

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