Throughout March, ‘The Ugly Food Shop’ was open in Bangor’s Deiniol Shopping Centre. The shop sold irregular or ugly looking fruit and veg that do not meet conventional standards set by supermarkets. Due to its popularity, the shop will re-open in September 2015.
The shop offered customers the chance to both save the fruit and veg which would otherwise be wasted at landfill sites, eat healthier, and buy fruit and veg at a much cheaper price than at supermarket retailers. Goods available to purchase included ‘Soup in a Sack’ and fresh smoothies, as well as loose fruit and veg.
While made available to the public and opened on Bangor’s High Street, the shop was managed and created by Bangor University students. A university spokesperson stated that “the shop brought a new lease of life to Bangor’s Deiniol Shopping Centre, as well as allowing students to develop vital enterprise and employability skills that will be invaluable in the world of work.”
The spokesperson claimed that the response from customers was so positive that students will not only be re-opening the shop’s doors in September, but are also looking to develop the Ugly Food brand even further.
School of Psychology student Dan Taylor, who managed the shop, said: “The ugly food shop has taught me of the potential to become an entrepreneur in the future. It has been a really worthwhile experience and great to be able to be involved in a venture which seems to have been able to meet a need in the community.”
