Christine Hope
Christine Hope, founder of Hopes of Longtown
Christine wants to keep local community spirit alive in her village.
In 2001, Foot & mouth had devastated the income in the area and many people were carrying mental scars not visible to many. The closure of the village shop was not just a service lost but another mental scar of what had happened.
Christine took action by renting the closed down premises (on a percentage of turnover) Hopes of Longtown was started, within two years it became a partnership on a new site and in 2004 had built brand new premises meeting new customer expectations and being compliant with disability standards to include everyone and a turnover of quarter of a million from nothing.
Hopes of Longtown aims to provide the quality of the farmers market with the convenience of a superstore, sustaining local economies.
With a second store opening last month “Hopes of Poston”, businesses are going from strength to strength, with some of the more unusual socially aware products being a must. Plus with a pig, composter and Wiggly wormery it definitely has put a strategy in place to minimise waste.
