A new Northallerton coffee shop which aims to support other local businesses has received praise from MP Rishi Sunak.
Bean + Bake opened in the Town Hall Buildings during the summer and has made sourcing locally produced food and drink a key part of its business.
Mr Sunak, MP for Richmond and Northallerton, visited the shop to meet owner Steve Hewitt and hear how the venture is helping other independent businesses in the area.
The coffee shop occupies a small unit in the corner of Northallerton Town Hall, offering baked goods, sandwiches, coffee and ice cream.
It also has a small indoor seating area and outdoor tables on Town Hall Square.
Among its suppliers are Sorcha’s Artisan Bakehouse, LB Quality Grocers, Acorn Dairy, Rounton Coffee, Thompsons Butchers and Yorvale Ice Cream, all based in North Yorkshire, Teesside or Darlington.
Mr Sunak welcomed the business’s commitment to supporting the local economy.
He said: “Small businesses like this really drive our local economy, especially when they support other local business. More of our money circulating in our small enterprises is good for all of us.
“It is also great to see another business coming to our High Street, helping to keep it a vibrant, attractive shopping destination.”
Mr Hewitt has extensive experience in the hospitality industry in North Yorkshire, including running the Joiner’s Shop café at nearby Ingleby Cross.
He said he was pleased to welcome his local MP and explain the thinking behind the new venture.
He added: “Shopping locally makes sense, I believe, for customers and businesses.
“I want to make sure that every penny spent in my business helps to support other businesses – like the butchers who supplies the bacon and sausages and the fruit and vegetable market stall holders who are just yards from my business.”
Bean + Bake is open from 9am to 4pm, Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday, and is closed on Tuesdays and Sundays.
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