Coffee chain Bob and Berts set up shop in Falkirk

Bob and Berts will open their new store at 124-126 High Street, the location of the old Burger King, at the end of September.

The chain, which specialises in quality coffee and fresh food, has found great success since it was founded in Portstewart in 2013, expanding to 16 stores across Northern Ireland.

Construction for the Falkirk store got underway last week, with co-owners David Ferguson and Colin McClean excited at the prospect of the new coffee shop.

David (33) said: “I think the store will be a benefit to the community. It will provide for the local economy, provide plenty of local jobs and it could be really important for the high street, because we find with our stores it helps attract more businesses around them.

“Over the next few days a marketing stand will be outside the building which will showcase some of our smaller products, giving the people of Falkirk a taste of what the brand is about.

“At the moment it looks like it will be 20 to 25 jobs the store will create, between managers, assistant managers, chefs and baristas.”

With various stores shutting across Falkirk town centre, David believes the store opening could help reinvigorate the high street.

He said: “I have seen numerous articles on retail closing in the town and I think this new opening is a big positive for the high street. We feel we can do well there because of our personal touch.

“One of the big differences between us and large brands like Costa and Starbucks is that the food is all fresh-cooked to order on site, and we have found that has went down well in regional markets.

“From research we found our brand fitted well into the local market in Scotland because the market is quite similar to Northern Ireland.

“There’s a strong sense of local community, the people are loyal to their local town, and we find with our stores that it helps to create a community hub for people to come and enjoy quality coffee and fresh-cooked food.”

Anyone looking to apply for the new store can visit www.bobandberts.com.