Inverness café and gift shop owners take over running of Cawdor Village Stores
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Owners of a popular independent café in Inverness city centre are taking over the running of a much-loved Nairnshire village shop.
The team behind the Whisk Away café and gift shop in Queensgate have successfully bid to run Cawdor Village Store.
The shop premises features a wooden, tin-roofed store, with veranda and external seating and an eye-catching painted shop front sign.
As well as being an important hub for the village, the store is popular with visitors and frequently lauded on websites such as Tripadvisor.
Owner Nyomi Dixon, who moved Whisk Away from Baron Taylor’s Street to Queensgate last summer, also started a mobile catering van service in 2022.
The business prides itself on breakfasts, lunches, hot drinks and homemade cakes but have already guaranteed Cawdor locals that they will be continuing to stock usual village store products as well.
Ms Dixon called the latest project her “new baby” as she announced on social media: “Whisk Away was born, we moved units, added a food truck to the family (and) have an absolutely incredible team. What more could we possibly want.
“Well here it is. My love will definitely not be halved, but it has doubled that is for sure.
“From the moment I saw this wee cute unit I couldn't stop thinking about it, from being told ‘no way’ and I couldn't put an offer in, I had to put it to bed.
“Fast forward a couple weeks and I went to see the landlord and owners with my plan, and they accepted it, so we are expanding.
“Cawdor here we come.
“We will be retaining most of the village shop products just in a different way so don't panic you will have a village store just with a whisk twist on things, of course.”
The acquisition comes at an exciting time for the firm which is set to rebrand as the shortened Whisk in time for the opening .
There will be a seamless handover with past owners Audrey and John Wallace on October 9, before a fortnight’s closure to renovate the premises from October 30.
The revamped store, which will employ six staff, will then re-open on November 13, with a Christmas fair to showcase suppliers and products on November 18.
The firm, as a whole, will rebrand as the shortened Whisk for the re-opening to emphasise the sit-down dining element of the venture.
Ms Dixon added: “It is really exciting. My plans are to make it into a delicatessen with locally-sourced produce – bread, milk, eggs, really good cheeses – and I’ve already identified all of the suppliers.
“Whatever we’re selling in the shop will be incorporated in the menu, such as Whisk sausage rolls and sandwiches.
“Audrey and John ran it superbly for more than 10 years and are retiring, but it will still retain the element of being a convenience store.
“I want to emphasise that it will still be a big part of the community, and we want to work with the community.”
Cawdor Village Stores is found at Jubilee Cottages in the heart of Cawdor, close to the Cawdor Tavern.
