Cumbria Business Growth Hub supports Kendal café as it reopens under new name

 Submitted by Joe Sanders, Cumbria Business Growth Hub 19th Dec 2022



Based in Kendal town centre, Bumble Bees Take Away is owned and run by Andrew

McRobbie and Louise Hudson. While working towards the café’s reopening, the pair

contacted Cumbria Business Growth Hub for support. Three months on, business is booming

as the café serves good, honest food to happy customers six days a week.

Until July 2022, the café had been operating as Harry’s in the Town under different

ownership. However, with the business struggling due to rising costs, the decision was made

to close the café. Louise was working at Harry’s when it closed and decided to take over the

business with her partner Andrew.

Andrew and Louise purchased the kitchen equipment from the previous owner and then got

to work rebranding the café as Bumble Bees Takeaway. They added new items to the menu

and shopped around to find the best deals from suppliers to ensure profitability.

Bumble Bees Takeaway serves no-fuss, home-cooked food, from cooked breakfasts to pies,

sandwiches and soup at lunchtime, as well as freshly-baked cakes and specials including

chilli and quiches. The menu is competitively priced to appeal to the café’s clientele which

comprises both locals and tourists.

When Andrew and Louise approached Cumbria Business Growth Hub looking for support,

we knew just who to contact. Growth Hub business adviser Adrian Luckham has a

background in sales and marketing and a track record of providing our clients with

straightforward commercial advice which increases profitability. Adrian worked closely with

Andrew and Louise offering advice and guidance every step of the way. Andrew said:

“The support we received was invaluable being our first time starting a business. The help

we got with even the most trivial of questions will stand us in great stead for the future.

Anyone with any plans to start a business, this help is an opportunity that can’t be wasted.”

Andrew and Louise’s determination for the business to succeed, combined with expert input

from Adrian, has paid off and just over three months in the business is turning a profit. Now

established, the pair can contemplate the future of Bumble Bees Take Away and its role in

serving the people of Kendal.


“Looking forward we will strive to keep prices as low as we possibly can. We know the

people of Kendal are struggling like the rest of the country so pricing is paramount to our

plans. We will add products that we think are value for money and hope that we are well

supported by the local community.”

Our Business Start-Up Support programme is supported by South Lakeland District Council.

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