Doggy delights in Arnold

A canine catering company has set tails wagging across the country after a successful exhibition at this year’s Crufts show.

Mrs Bishop’s Doggy Deli has been based at our Byron Industrial Estate  in Arnold, Nottingham, for almost a year and has won a host of new private and retail customers after visiting the UK’s premier dog show.

Owner Paula Cassady-Bishop founded the dog bakery three years ago, after discovering a flair for creating hand-crafted treats for her sister’s pooch. The quirky start-up business grew quickly and has grown from its birth in Paula’s kitchen to a former café at Byron Industrial Estate.

Paula’s husband Alan now helps her run the business, which specialises in high quality, natural dog treats.  The products are given the seal of approval by the couple’s own pooches, Irish wolfhound Bryn and Jack Russell-Chihuahua cross Eddie. Cats are not left out either, with a special range for felines including purr-fiteroles.

Quality shines through

“We try to use local ingredients wherever possible, as we are supporting the Keep Trade Local campaign,” Paula says.

“We don’t use any salt or sugar, or anything which is not natural. Our philosophy is to keep our products at high quality but as low price as possible.”

The Doggy Deli’s speciality is the Cherry Barkwell, which the firm has trademarked. The canine confection looks just like a cherry Bakewell tart, but is made from a chicken biscuit, white dog chocolate and a dried cranberry. Customers can also buy birthday cakes and treats for sensitive diets.

Paula says the development of the business has been a huge learning curve, as it requires knowledge not only of doggy-safe ingredients, but also a raft of pet food legislation and EU regulations.

“Crufts was a great event for us and we have learnt a lot from the experience that will help us at future exhibitions,” Paula says.

“We had a lot of interest and gained new custom from individuals and pet shops alike.  We are hoping the business growth will enable us to recruit later in the year.”

Ideal business space

Mrs Bishop’s Doggy Deli products are available to buy online, through retailers and directly from Unit C21B at Byron Industrial Estate, where they are also created.

“We love it here at Bizspace.  I had been looking for a unit here for a while, but had to wait for one with running water in it to become available. This is ideal and has just the right amount of space for us,” Paula says.

Business Centre Manager Jamie Douglas adds: “It is a real talking point for us to have such an unusual business within the centre. The Doggy Deli treats are really popular and dog lovers in the area are lucky to have the shop on their doorstep.”

Byron Industrial Estate centre features a variety of commercial premises including:

• offices
• studio space
• light industrial units  and
• storage units.

For more information contact Jamie Douglas on 0115 959 8808.