POV of a business owner in Chapelton: The Juicing Co.

Nestled in the heart of Chapelton’s vibrant community, The Boxes offer a unique opportunity for small businesses to flourish – and The Juicing Co is living proof of that.

From busy farmers’ market weekends to juicing for celebrities and nourishing a growing wellness community – we caught up with Vanessa to hear how The Juicing Co. is getting on at its premises 18 months after receiving the keys.

What makes Chapelton feel like the right ‘home base’ for The Juicing Co?

“It’s literally a seven-minute drive from my house to my box – which is ideal. But honestly, the community here is just lovely. I love, love, love the Chapelton community – they’re so supportive. I’ve made so many lovely friends here – they really are the best.

“Plus, The Boxes are also such a unique opportunity – there isn’t anything else that offers small, sustainable spaces for growing businesses. This made that first jump so much less scary!”

What’s it like working alongside other small, local businesses at The Boxes?

“It’s lovely. Everyone is here to support each other, we’ve got each other’s back. We all help each other out. Even though we’re all well-established in our own right, we’re still young, small businesses and a lot of us work solo, so having that little network around you really helps – it makes things feel less lonely.”

It’s been 18 months since you moved into The Boxes. How has your business changed since then?

“The growth has been phenomenal. Before, I was juicing from home – and I never want to do that again! I had to work on a much smaller scale, which meant I couldn’t do events or anything like that.

“Since moving into The Boxes, everything has just grown really quickly. The farmers’ markets brought a whole new level of exposure – we’ve had queues for over an hour and a half! I feel bad in one way, but it’s also amazing.

“Having a physical space has brought a whole new level of visibility. If this is what the last 18 months have brought, I’m excited to see what the next 18 look like!”

What have been your biggest learnings as a business owner – and what advice would you give to others thinking of setting up in Chapelton?

“I think the biggest thing I’ve learned is to be flexible. You have to be willing to pivot quickly and not be afraid to try new things. Some ideas work brilliantly, and others don’t – and that’s okay. That’s just part of running a small business.

“You need to let go of your ego, be okay with things not always going to plan, and just keep trying. It’s definitely a resilience thing – learning, adapting and moving forward.

“And if you’re thinking of setting up in Chapelton, my biggest advice would be: support the local community, and the community will support you. If you show up for others, they’ll rally around you too – that’s what I’ve seen time and time again here.”

What have been some of your biggest “pinch me” moments?

“I’ve had a few pretty wild moments actually! I’ve got videos of Joey Essex drinking our juices on Dancing on Ice. We’ve also supplied Ant & Dec – I grew up watching Saturday Night Takeaway, so that was surreal.

“We’ve juiced for The Voice too – to think that Will.i.am and Sir Tom Jones have had our juices is just… wild! And I’m actually juicing for them again next month. Those kinds of moments are crazy, especially when it’s people you grew up seeing on TV.”

Have you introduced any new products or services recently? What’s proving popular?

“Other than our core range of juice packages, we launched group cleanses at the end of last year – they were really popular, and I love the community aspect of them.

“Then there’s matcha lattes – probably our most popular item ever. People are obsessed! We’ve done variations like maple matcha, vanilla matcha, and I’m about to trial a delicious collagen matcha too.

“We’ve got seasonal specials – like our berry basil juice. People love it! At the farmers’ markets, we do more specials, our super popular brunch bags, as well as a few refined sugar-free treats like our millionaire cups rather than the core range, so people can come try something new.

“The idea is: being healthy doesn’t have to be boring. You can still enjoy delicious things – but without emulsifiers, additives, or junk – just whole foods.”

What are you most looking forward to in the coming months?

“We’ve just finished Offshore Europe, which was our biggest project to date – producing over 2,400 juices. To top it off, we were recognised in a Parliamentary motion, which was just lovely!

“Looking ahead, we’re juicing for The Voice again next month, which is so exciting!

“Going forward, I want to focus on bringing out more simple wellness tools – I’ve got another eBook in the works…

“I’m also looking into bringing someone on board, which could allow us to open more days, do more events, and expand on the wellness lifestyle side of the business. I want to keep creating that awareness – that The Juicing Co is about wellness, community and feeling good from the inside out.”

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