The Oldest Sweet Shop in the World, a family-run business in North Yorkshire, has been operating for nearly 200 years. Despite the nostalgia and sugar-coated charm, the business is facing challenges such as rising costs, online competition, and the fallout from tax hikes. Owner Ben Howie discusses the pressure on the business and the need to pass on costs to customers, slowing investment plans, and the importance of keeping the shop authentic.
At first glance, it looks like a scene frozen in time. Behind the creaking wooden counter of the world's oldest sweet shop , glass jars brim with pear drops, kola cubes and rhubarb and custards while customers still ask for 'a quarter' just as generations before them did nearly 200 years ago.
But behind the nostalgia and sugar-coated charm of The Oldest Sweet Shop in the World lies a modern business battling rising costs, online competition and the fallout from Rachel Reeves' tax hikes. Owner Ben Howie, 29, who took over the famous North Yorkshire institution shortly before Covid struck, says recent increases to National Insurance and other business costs have left the family-run business under pressure - forcing price rises and slowing investment plans.
'We've definitely had to pass on some of the costs to customers,' the 29-year-old told the Daily Mail. 'For myself and my brother, it means we're taking less out of the business than we were a few years ago, and we've slowed the rate of investment back into the business. 'We'd probably always forego our own take-home before letting staff go. But everything has become that bit tighter.
' Despite the squeeze, the business still shifts more than a tonne of sweets a week between the historic shop in Pateley Bridge and its booming online operation, run by Ben's brother James, 21, which now exports British confectionery across Europe and the United States.
Owner Ben Howie, 29, who took over the famous North Yorkshire institution shortly before Covid struck The shop front in North Yorkshire which has remained operating for 200 years The sweets can still be found in the original glass jars - which are no longer being produced The shop pictured in the late 1800s operating out of the same building which has now stood for over 400 years American customers, Ben says, 'have a very sweet tooth and an appreciation for British sweets', particularly traditional favourites including rhubarb and custards, Yorkshire mixture and liquorice. They have even won the loyalty of big corporations who every Christmas will order around 13,000 boxes of sweets as gifts for their employees.
But despite this modern shift, the shop itself remains stubbornly old-fashioned. Packets are still weighed out on original Victorian scales, customers are served from towering glass jars from the 60s, and many sweets are made to recipes dating back generations.
'The previous owners were very keen for it to be taken over by someone who would keep it authentic,' Ben said. 'We've kept it as a 'living, working museum'. If you just wanted a cheap bag of sweets you could go to a supermarket, but there you don't get sweets weighed out on original scales, the atmosphere, or the friendly chat.
' He continued: 'We have original vending machines from the late Victorian era – one for Beechnut chewing gum and one for Woodbines tobacco cigarettes. 'They would have been on the outside wall as early vending machines: you’d put your penny in, turn the handle, and a tiny packet of chewing gum would come out. ' 'We also still use original scales: counterbalance or cantilever scales and till - once bought from the butcher down the road.
' The shop's deliberately simple pricing structure means most bags cost either £1.80 or £1.99, with classics such as white mice, sherbet lemons and cola cubes among the top sellers. 'That means some lines carry little to no margin, while others carry more, but overall it allows us to create the experience we want,' says Ben. And yes - the owner still samples the stock daily.
'I've tried all the sweets we stock,' Ben laughed. 'I probably eat sweets every day. ' American customers, Ben says, 'have a very sweet tooth and an appreciation for British sweets', particularly traditional favourites including rhubarb and custards, Yorkshire mixture and liquorice. They have even won the loyalty of big corporations who every Christmas will order around 13,000 boxes of sweets as gifts for their employees.
But despite this modern shift, the shop itself remains stubbornly old-fashioned. Packets are still weighed out on original Victorian scales, customers are served from towering glass jars from the 60s, and many sweets are made to recipes dating back generations.
'The previous owners were very keen for it to be taken over by someone who would keep it authentic,' Ben said. 'We've kept it as a 'living, working museum'. If you just wanted a cheap bag of sweets you could go to a supermarket, but there you don't get sweets weighed out on original scales, the atmosphere, or the friendly chat.
' He continued: 'We have original vending machines from the late Victorian era – one for Beechnut chewing gum and one for Woodbines tobacco cigarettes. 'They would have been on the outside wall as early vending machines: you’d put your penny in, turn the handle, and a tiny packet of chewing gum would come out. ' 'We also still use original scales: counterbalance or cantilever scales and till - once bought from the butcher down the road.
' The shop's deliberately simple pricing structure means most bags cost either £1.80 or £1.99, with classics such as white mice, sherbet lemons and cola cubes among the top sellers. 'That means some lines carry little to no margin, while others carry more, but overall it allows us to create the experience we want,' says Ben. And yes - the owner still samples the stock daily.
'I've tried all the sweets we stock,' Ben laughed. 'I probably eat sweets every day.
Sweet Shop North Yorkshire Rising Costs Online Competition Tax Hikes Family-Run Business Authenticity Nostalgia Sugar-Coated Charm Expanding Online Operation Expanding Warehouse Operation Expanding The Online Side Of The Company Growing The Warehouse Operation Sending Parcels Across Britain Europe And America Deliberately Simple Pricing Structure Packets Weighed Out On Original Victorian Scal Customers Served From Towering Glass Jars From Sweets Made To Recipes Dating Back Generations Original Vending Machines From The Late Victor Original Scales: Counterbalance Or Cantilever
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