"This side of Northampton needs to be its own quarter," says business owner

Ground Craft Coffee was supported by a grant from Northampton Borough Council.

Ground Craft Coffee says Wellingborough Road should be a quarter of its own and has "the most ambitious businesses."

David Coleman, 38, opened his artisan coffee shop after a grant from the Northampton Borough Council's Business Incentive Scheme.

But his love for coffee and the inspiration behind his shop comes from Australia.

David took his inspiration from a trip to Australia.

"When I visited in 2003 with who is now my wife, they were ahead of their time in their approach to coffee," David said. "They had the brunch and social style of coffee shop years before Britain did. The flat white even originates from New Zealand and Australia.

"The classic meeting place in Britain used to be the pub. Now it's the coffee shop."

David left his career in marketing and opened Ground Craft Coffee in 2016 with a grant from the Northampton Borough Council.

His designs wired the shop up with USB ports, laptop charging points and free wifi, and the decoration is styled after shops he was on his trip to Australia.

Business owner and barista David Coleman says Wellingborough Road should be its own quarter.

"We often have one side of the room who have come in to work, and the other side is here to socialise," David said.

"We have a license too and can hold some pretty big events."

He says he owes his success to the Northampton public and his customers on Wellingborough Road.

"Northampton has a very discerning but very encouraging public, and we've made some very loyal customers.

"We try to source local products and support the other small businesses growing on Wellingborough Road.

"Wellingborough Road raises the bar for businesses in Northampton. It needs to be its own quarter, really. Northampton is crying out for more of these businesses.

"The grant from the Borough Council was hugely beneficial and helped me realise my vision fully. It gave me the means to go ahead and do it."

The council committed almost £1million to support 115 small businesses to start up or expand in the town through the Business Incentive Scheme.

David said: "I have been blown away by the encouragement. It's hard work but I'm loving it."

Entrepreneurs can find out more about the Business Incentive Scheme at the Northampton Borough Council website, at http://www.northampton.gov.uk/bis.