From Online Bakery to High Street Café

What Every Independent Hospitality Brand Should Consider Before Opening Their First Permanent Space

 

 

There’s something special about seeing an independent business open the doors to its very first permanent home.

After years of building a loyal customer base through markets, pop-ups and online orders, a bricks-and-mortar space represents far more than a new address. It’s the moment a brand becomes something customers can fully experience.

This month, we were delighted to see Chummy’s Bakery officially open its first bakery and coffee shop in Droitwich.

Having spent the last six years building a reputation for handcrafted brownies, cookies and sweet treats, the move marks an exciting new chapter for the business. For us, it was also a reminder that great hospitality design is about much more than creating an attractive interior. It’s about translating everything people already know and love about a brand into a physical space.

 

 

The Independent Advantage

 

Increasingly, customers aren’t simply buying products. They’re buying experiences.

It’s a timely moment for independent operators. The UK’s branded coffee shop market was valued at £6.8 billion in 2025, with 12,313 branded coffee shop outlets now operating across the country. Alongside that, the independent coffee shop sector continues to grow as consumers increasingly seek unique, experience-led venues over generic chains.

For businesses like Chummy’s, creating a permanent home isn’t just about expanding. It’s about giving customers a place to experience the brand in a completely new way.

 

 

The Opportunity for Independent Hospitality

 

Independent coffee shops are thriving, but they’re also operating in one of the most competitive hospitality sectors in the UK.

According to World Coffee Portal, the independent coffee shop market grew by 3.3% over the past year to 13,211 outlets, generating £5.1 billion in annual sales. At the same time, operators are facing rising costs and increasingly high customer expectations, making it more important than ever to offer something beyond great coffee alone.

Research also shows that almost one in four British adults now buys food or drink from a café at least once a week, rising to 30% among 18 to 24-year-olds. Cafés have become far more than somewhere to grab a coffee. They’re places to work, socialise, relax and spend time.

 

That’s why atmosphere, layout and customer experience have become just as important as what’s on the menu. The businesses that stand out aren’t always the ones serving the best coffee. They’re the ones creating spaces people genuinely enjoy being in.

 

Designing a Brand, Not Just a Space

 

From the outset, the vision for Chummy’s was clear.

The new bakery and coffee shop needed to feel every bit as warm, welcoming and genuine as the products coming out of the kitchen. Somewhere customers could grab their morning coffee, catch up with friends over fresh pastries or simply slow down for a while.

Every successful hospitality space starts with the people behind the business. Before thinking about materials, lighting or furniture, it’s important to understand what makes the brand unique, who it’s for and how customers should feel when they walk through the door.

The strongest interiors don’t chase trends. They create spaces that feel authentic because they’re rooted in the story of the business.

For Chummy’s, that meant creating more than just a bakery. It meant creating a permanent home for a business that had already built a loyal community, ensuring the warmth, personality and care people associated with the brand could now be experienced the moment they stepped inside.

 

 

 

Where a Good Layout Makes All the Difference

 

One of the biggest misconceptions about hospitality interiors is that they’re primarily about aesthetics.

In reality, layout has a huge influence on how a business performs.

A successful bakery or café should feel intuitive from the moment someone walks through the door. Customers should naturally move from entrance to display, ordering, collection and seating without unnecessary confusion or bottlenecks.

It’s equally important to think about the people working behind the counter.

A thoughtful layout doesn’t just improve the customer experience. It supports the day-to-day running of the business too. Clear circulation, well-positioned counters and efficient back-of-house planning can reduce bottlenecks, improve service during busy periods and make life easier for the team.

Good design should work just as hard operationally as it does visually.

When both the customer journey and staff journey have been carefully considered, the whole space simply works better.

 

Designing Around the Business Model

 

A beautiful interior is important, but the practical requirements of the business need to be understood first.

Before taking on a unit, operators should consider whether food will be cooked or baked on site, whether extraction is required, what services are already available and whether landlord or planning approvals may be needed.

Chummys found a unit that suited its operating model particularly well. As the baking would continue off site, the space did not need a full production kitchen. This meant more of the budget could be invested in the customer-facing elements, including bespoke joinery, furniture, lighting and finishes.

The team was also clear that the bakery needed to support the wider brand. Alongside serving customers, it would provide an attractive and consistent setting for photography and social media content. Positioned on a busy junction, the shopfront also acts as a permanent advertisement for the business.

Because the unit was compact, establishing a clear customer journey was essential. The layout needed to accommodate queuing, ordering, collection and seating without creating congestion.

Resolving these practical and operational points early gave the project a strong foundation and allowed the visual design to develop around a space that genuinely worked.

 

The Spaces People Remember

 

While quality products bring customers through the door, atmosphere is often what encourages them to return.

Research from Zonal, CGA and UKHospitality found that 46% of customers say a good atmosphere is one of the biggest reasons they revisit a hospitality venue, alongside quality of food, service and value for money.

Lighting, materials, seating, acoustics and even the way natural light moves through a space all contribute to how customers feel. These details are rarely noticed individually, but together they create an experience people remember.

For Chummy’s, creating that atmosphere was just as important as designing the bakery itself. The finished space feels relaxed, welcoming and comfortable, reflecting the warmth and personality the business has become known for over the last six years.

The most successful hospitality spaces aren’t necessarily the most elaborate. They’re the ones that make customers feel at ease, encourage them to stay a little longer and give them a reason to come back.

 

A Shared Vision, Brought to Life

 

The best hospitality projects are always collaborative.

Working closely with the Chummy’s team allowed us to understand not just what they wanted the bakery to look like, but how they wanted customers to feel when they walked through the door. That shared understanding shaped every decision throughout the project and helped create a space that feels like a natural extension of the brand they’d spent six years building.

Following the opening, the team shared these kind words:

 

“We had an amazing experience working with Copper & Ash on the design of our coffee shop. From start to finish, they completely understood our vision and brought it to life even better than we had imagined. Their creativity, attention to detail, communication and overall support throughout the process were fantastic. They made the whole design journey feel smooth and exciting, and we couldn’t be happier with the final result. We would highly recommend Copper & Ash to anyone looking for a talented, professional and genuinely lovely team to work with.”

 

 

We’re incredibly grateful for these kind words and proud to have played a part in bringing Chummy’s first permanent home to life.

 

 

 

The Start of Something Bigger

 

Watching Chummy’s welcome its first customers was a brilliant moment for everyone involved, but it’s also a reminder of what’s possible for independent hospitality businesses ready to take the next step.

The move from online orders or market stalls to a permanent home is about far more than opening a new venue. It’s about creating a place people recognise, remember and return to.

Thoughtful design can’t replace a great product, but it can bring a brand to life in a way customers genuinely connect with. When a space reflects the personality of the business, supports the people working within it and creates an experience customers enjoy, it becomes much more than somewhere to buy coffee or pastries.

In an increasingly competitive hospitality market, that’s often what makes the difference.

 

Resources

The insights featured in this article are informed by research from:

• • World Coffee Portal – Project Café UK and the UK Independent Coffee Shop Report (market growth and outlet data)

• • Statista – UK cafés and coffee shops market value and consumer behaviour

• • Zonal, CGA & UKHospitality – GO Technology Report (customer return drivers and hospitality trends)
  •