In an ever-changing financial climate, businesses are opening and closing all the time, hoping that their product or service will be the next big thing to rake in the customers. The life expectancy of a shop on a high street for instance, is a lot shorter than it would have been 5 or 6 years ago. However one shop trying to break that pattern is Patisserie Valerie, a high-quality patisserie which has just arrived in Sutton and has instantly made an impact. Upon first examination of the shop and what it has to offer, you would not expect it to be successful.

Sutton High Street is not renowned for its lavish and elegant shops so it is a bit of a surprise that the owners of Patisserie Valerie, which is a national chain of unique patisseries, have decided to locate to Sutton as an area for one of its shops. The shop itself seems unnoticeable, until you see the swarms of people taking a leaflet from outside and deciding to pop in for a slice of cake. In the windows you can see beautifully-decorated cakes, mostly for Weddings, showing that this particular company isn’t your normal bakery. They get personal. One thing which also catches me by surprise when I look at the store is that there is an upstairs. Yes, a second floor which not many high street stores own on Sutton High Street. Upstairs is a seating area for customers to sit and enjoy their purchases. It may be a statement of intent by the shop, as if they need the extra space to accommodate for all of the customers they expect to walk through their doors.

At the moment, it certainly appears to be working. It has flyers being handed out and people are taking note of the new shop. It is not a customary sight you would associate with Sutton High Street, but nevertheless people seem to be experimenting with the more expensive food and drink on offer and dipping into their pockets to have a taste of what is on offer. Although it is very early days, Patisserie Valerie has taken its new position by storm and if it continues with its current success, it could have a very bright and possibly lasting future in its place on the high street.