OUR STORY
Hello! In 2017 we visited the area for the first time in years and saw that whilst the waterfalls were as beautiful as ever, one, very large, prominent building which was once thriving and packed with visitors stood empty and very unloved. Out of curiosity we viewed the property and could immediately see the potential. However after some thought and research the scale of the work involved, the funding required and the fact that this type of business was way out of our area of expertise meant we felt it was just a pipe dream and so off we went back to our lives and jobs in Leeds.
Months went by and the building remained for sale, never too far from our minds. We still had the floor plan and details from the viewing and couldn't stop ourselves from visualising what we could have done. One wise friend said if we were still thinking about it that must mean something and family members encouraged us to look at it again. Our thinking at that point was just to do everything we could to put our minds at rest that it really wasn't possible so that we'd have no regrets and could move on.
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The more we looked into it, the more we felt we could do this, and though some of the advice we got was that the risks were too big, we continued to find people who believed in what could be achieved.
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Getting finance for a large commercial property with no current business or accounts to show its worth proved almost impossible. However we tracked down a handful of finance and business experts who saw the opportunity and our determination and with them and a very detailed business plan we set about making it happen.
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The advice about the risks were true, I had to give up my career as a HR Partner, sell our home and move our little boy into holiday accommodation and a new school for the start of term. We literally put everything we had into it and this all had to be done before the sale was even agreed. No guarantees.
Finally months later we got the keys and got to work, racing against time to open before the season ended. On a tight budget and deadline and during a period of unprecedented snowfall, we started to bring the space back to life and somehow create a new business in the process.
May 2018 saw Liz welcome her first customers in the Coffee House and we haven't looked back since - well we haven't really had time! After relying on hard-working family and friends for the first few months we are now supported by a close knit team who are a pleasure to work with and who we class as our extended family.
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Our hope is that we have created a welcoming space for visitors and the community to enjoy. A place that is now much more suited to it's incredible location.
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The Falls now houses 3 unique businesses, a busy coffee shop with a full menu, Bows & Arrows Gift Shop, run by Jennifer, selling unique, locally sourced products and our most recent addition The Falls Venue. which has brought the events space next door back to life. It had previously hosted many a local wedding, party and seen a host of dances and events in the past. The Falls Venue is available for hire for any occasion or for business use and also plans to host their our own exciting calendar of events.
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For us the hard work continues but the story here has just begun...We look forward to welcoming you.
Liz & Nicky Owners of
The Falls Property
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