30/08/2026
It started off by accident, I was leaving an office job when I was contacted by a fellow vegan who ran markets to say Sparks needed someone to take on the cafe space. I had call with Jenny and then that was it I was doing it.
The first week was horrendous, I couldn't get anything working and I felt so overwhelmed and questioned if I had done the right thing. Luckily for me everyone at Sparks was so helpful and amazing. And in that first week particularly Sam who helped me with my coffee machine and so many other things.
I built it up, slowly and started bringing in things I thought people would want. Some things went amazing like the vegan Christmas sandwich other things not so much. But I loved trying all these new things and talking to the customers and really starting to make it mine. It was tiring and stressful but I loved it.
Speaking of making it mine that including getting 🐸 Cal Aitken🌙 to do this incredible mural on our wall. It drew in so many people and still gets so much attention. Cal was great to work with and it couldn't be a much better fit for a cafe.
We had some outreach too. We invited Viva! Vegan Charity in to do some food related work, I did a talk on egg replacers. We also ran other events like kids cupcake decorating, our cheese night and a film screening.
And I got to work with so many amazing people and companies. One of the most important was Floatmylk who make the best oat milk. I loved exploring the options available and supporting fellow small businesses
A big highlight was doing the fair trade afternoon tea for Sparks birthday in the 3 years I was there. I loved hearing from growers from overseas about their life and their products.
A huge thank you to Sparks. I will miss it so much as it has been incredible. Ive made so many friends there and had so much fun that I'm so sad to be going. But this isn't the end it's merely a see you later. Keep your eyes posted for what's to come next. Thank you all for being amazing!
