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Yorkshire Biz August 07 - Jaydene Halliday - Plush Cafe
Want to indulge in some lovely cake and coffee in the centre of York?
In August, we are featuring many amazing female Yorkshire entrepreneurs by showcasing their business (#yorkshirebizaugust) and a bit of personal life on our shop blog.
Make sure you enter our big Yorkshire Biz August Giveaway (#ybagiveaway) to win one of our prizes given out by these superwomen! No need to be in Yorkshire to enjoy our prizes. (read the bottom of this post to find out how to enter)
Today we are featuring Jaydene and her cafe business Plush Cafe in the centre of the lovely Yorkshire city of York.
Business Name
Business Related Questions
Which part of Yorkshire is your business based?
In the city centre of York on Stonegate, right by the Minster.
Tell us a little bit about your business - What makes your business a little different from others?
Plush Café is an independent business owned by 2 sisters and our brother. We have three themed dining rooms – the Garden Room with its swing seats and floor to ceiling flowers, the Art-Deco-inspired Neon Room, and the luxurious, floor cushion-filled Bohemian Room. We serve over the top cakes, Afternoon Tea and a delicious, Instagram-worthy food menu, which includes vegan, vegetarian and gluten-free options, all served with our signature edible flowers. We also have a boutique store, which has cute, quirky and unusual finds galore – ranging from children’s tea sets covered in sloths to flamingo salt and pepper sets!
(Added by Ivy) Plush Cafe also has a lovely online shop that sells kitchen china, tea pots, and other quirky little things.
What’s your favourite ever product or service that you currently sell or have sold?
In the café my go-to drinks are Dirty Chai Lattes and Toffee Popcorn Hot Chocolates! Usually paired with either our breakfast or dessert pancakes! Shop-wise we sell this gorgeous little llama night light that I absolutely adore. I have one at home for my baby.
How are you pivoting or adapting your business during this crazy Covid virus time?
We have removed seats and tables from two of our dining rooms to ensure social distancing can be maintained, and in the Garden Room (where the swing and bench seating is fixed) we have installed screens between each of the tables. We’ve also installed screens in the shop area at the till and across all the counters.
Our staff have been fully COVID-19 trained, and wear face masks and face shields. We have hand sanitiser available for our guests, and clean surfaces even more frequently than we did prior to the pandemic. We also have QR codes that allows guests to view our menu on their phones rather than handling menus.
Why did you choose this business to run or establish?
I am a toxicologist with a PhD in chemistry, my brother is an Officer in the Merchant Navy and our younger sister is a flavour chemist, so a café and shop is a bit outside of our usual remit! We had discussed starting a business together for years, and when I fell pregnant I decided I wanted a job that gave me more time and flexibility to be with my baby. The three of us loved the idea of starting a café and wanted to create something really fun and unique. The idea snowballed from there and here we are!
What is your one product or service you would recommend for either a pregnant woman, newborn mom, or for babies, toddlers, or young children?
As a new mom myself, I’ve worked to ensure that the café is as child and baby-friendly as possible. We are also breastfeeding friendly. My recommendation for any mom would be to come in and enjoy the smiles on your children’s faces as they tuck into Teddy Toast on a swing next to a life sized flamingo! For a mom-to-be, I’d recommend coming in with friends for a lovely hot drink before the sleepless nights start (we have a fantastic range of caffeine-free drinks, including our rainbow coloured superfood lattes)!
Personally Related
Who or what inspires you?
My mother! She is the strongest woman I have ever met. She raised 3 children (including homeschooling them!) whilst travelling with them across Africa, the Middle East, Scandinavia and Europe. She’s faced some of the most incredibly challenging times head on and despite this is still so full of love, humour and compassion (not just for us – she’s an NHS nurse too!).
What TV shows can make you binge on all day long?
Killing Eve! (I mostly binge on Hey Duggee at the moment!)
What is your favourite ‘me-time’ or ‘self-care’ activity?
A good coffee in a beautiful spot.
What is one thing you love about living in Yorkshire?
I’ve lived all over the world and York is undoubtedly one of my favourite places to be! Its so hard to choose just one thing – probably the old, quirky, wonky buildings in York!
What advice can you give to a new-born mom?
Do whatever you feel comfortable with – don’t worry about what the books, the apps, the in-laws or anyone else has to say about it. As long as you’re being safe and you and the baba are happy, you do you!
What advice can you give to a toddler mom?
My 10 month old has just started walking – I need this advice please!
Final Words
So there you go. I really hope you have enjoyed learning more about Jaydene and her fabulous business, if you'd like to find out more, here are her contact details:
Contact details:
Website: www.plushcafe.co.uk
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/PlushYork
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/plush_cafe/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/plush_cafe
Email: info@plushcafe.co.uk
Yorkshire Biz August Giveaway
What are Jaydene’s gifts for the giveaway?
Jaydene is giving out two x £15 gift cards which can be used in the cafe or the shop (either in-store or online).
One winner is drawn from Facebook entries and the other for Instagram's.
Enter the Giveaways
If you want to enter our August Giveaway (entries close on 30 Aug 2020), click on the links below to take part.
Please make sure you read the description to understand how to enter the giveaway contests as the two giveaways have different requirements.
By reading this interview article, we hope it will encourage you to support more small local UK businesses. It will be even better if it inspires you to create your own business! There are many other Yorkshire Biz August businesses we have to introduce you.
Click here to find out more about the campaign and links to other interview blog posts.
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