Meet the mums aiming to bring a touch of Willy Wonka with their new sweet shop

Sandra McCauley and Kelly Roberts have set up Sweet Like Me and say they hope to bring a touch of Willy Wonka to Leigh Park.

Their shop, in Park Parade, opened earlier this month and the pair say they have been bowled over by the reaction from the community so far.

Kelly, 30, said: ‘We have had so much help to get started in the way of donations and people volunteering, it’s been amazing.

‘We have started with such a small budget, just £100, started from scratch if you like. It’s a work in progress at the moment but we have been really pleased with the response so far.’

The business idea came about when Kelly grew unhappy in her past job as an events coordinator. She shared her concerns with her friend Sandra, who she met 15 years ago when she went to stay with her while in foster care, and Sandra encouraged her to follow her dream of being her own boss.

As the pair live in Leigh Park and are mums, with six kids between them, they knew how much the community wanted a sweet shop.

They set up Sweet Like Me on Facebook to promote the business and they now have more than 2,500 followers. They regularly use the site to offer promotions and even offer a delivery service.

Then when the Bronson’s Barbers unit became available, they took it over and with the help of their partners and families, turned it into a delicious sweet emporium.

Kelly says they are now hopeful for a bright future and for more support.

‘The area in which we have set up is really run down and it can be very quiet,’ she said.

‘We wanted to bring a bit of colour to Leigh Park.

‘We are both working mums who have started from nothing and hopefully our story will inspire others.’