Harrogate Business Improvement District is encouraging local people and visitors to ‘share the love’ of the town in a new Valentine’s campaign.

Neon lights, a pop-up love heart and other props have been installed in Montpellier Street, on Swedish-inspired coffee house Fi:k’s exterior wall, as part of the We Love Harrogate initiative.

From tomorrow, passers-by will be invited to share just why they love Harrogate by posting photographs on social media platforms. Those doing so could win a range of prizes.

The campaign has been created by BID project manager Jo Caswell, who has worked with Fi:K and town centre florists Blamey’s to create the love heart made from artificial roses.

Harrogate BID manager Matthew Chapman said:

“Harrogate is a lovely town, and this campaign is all about people, residents and visitors, sharing their love for it.

“We have chosen Montpellier Street as we want to attract visitors to different parts of the town, so they can explore the great shops, bars and restaurants this area has to offer.

“We want to see pictures of individuals, couples, families, friends and pets, getting into the spirit and sharing their photographs on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.”

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Blamey’s is giving away a floral bouquet to the person who correctly guesses the number of roses used in the creation of the love heart.

The competition can be entered by scanning a QR code near the display.

Those entering who include the hashtag #sharetheloveHG1 will also be in with a chance of winning a £150 Harrogate Gift Card and a £60 Bettys afternoon tea voucher.

A selection of photos will be framed and hung alongside the love heart from Tuesday next week.

The We Love Harrogate campaign builds on last year’s I Love Harrogate video, where primary school children from St Peter’s, Coppice Valley, Birstwith & Admiral Long, Oatlands, Richard Taylor, and Western spoke about what they loved most about their home town.

One thing Harrogate isn’t short of is independent coffee shops.

Once associated as a trendy hangout for hipsters, now the majority of the population are queuing up to get their caffeine fix – and it better be a decent flat white.

New venues on the scene include Swedish coffee house Fi:k, in the Montpellier Quarter, which has also recently opened a branch in Knaresborough, Cortado, on Leeds Road and Heal, also in the Montpellier. There is also Bamber & Brown, a barista bar at Birk Crag, where you can enjoy an artisan coffee in a tipi, and Constellation Coffee, which opened on East Parade last month. Another Swedish coffee shop, Nord, is also set to open on Otley Road.

But what is it about these coffee shops that everyone is going nuts for? And can the town handle the increasing number?

Opening its doors on Leeds Road in August last year, Cortado is one of the new kids on the block.

Meeting spot

Manager Erin Seelig said:

“We felt like the Leeds Road area was missing the market as most of them are directed towards town and this area really needed something.

“Coffee shops are now slowly starting to expand out into the neighbourhoods, which is great.

“It’s a hub and a meeting spot for a lot of people, especially in Harrogate.”

Erin said she believed each coffee shop in Harrogate had it’s own community and offered something slightly different, with Cortado focusing on takeaways to cater for an increase in the number of people who grab one and go for a stroll.

Find your niche

She said this was a habit that had been formed on the back of the lockdown daily walks.

“We see the same people – and their dogs – every day and for us it’s lovely to serve the community.

“For us we are trying to create our own identity. You have got to find your niche.

“If you look at the coffee shops in Harrogate, some focus on the cakes, some do brunch and they all attract different types of people.”

Manager Erin Seelig at Cortado on Leeds Road.

Erin said customers cared more about the different blends of coffee than ever before and often liked to know where the beans were roasted.

Affordable luxury

She said:

“It’s an affordable luxury and it’s a part of the day a lot of people look forward to as there is also the social element.

“I think there is plenty of room for new coffee shops as Harrogate has a big population of residents, as well as tourists. It’s always nice to have choice, and if one of them is full, you can pick another.

“All the independent coffee shops support each other as well. We get massive support from Bean and Bud, Hoxton North and No.35. They have been in here lots and we go to them. We can share ideas, which is really nice.”

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Matthew Edmonds and Oliver Highland Edmonds launched HealMedical and Wellness Spa around seven years ago and last month they added artisan coffee and gift shop to their business, which is based in the Montpellier Quarter.

Coffee and chat

Matthew said:

“The vision for the coffee shop is to enhance the wellness spa with a relaxing, calm space in which having a coffee and a chat becomes an integral part of your experience.

“The retail gifting area aims to highlight independent businesses who strive to give back, whether it be working with the learning difficulties community or supporting environmental causes. This sums up the ethos of Heal.”

Matthew Edmonds, owner of Heal.

Unique experience

Matthew agreed that all new coffee shops in Harrogate should bring the community a unique experience.

He added:

“This is what we are aiming to do at Heal by also stocking quirky gifts and cards that you don’t see everywhere.”

Heal’s coffee and gift shop in the Montpellier Quarter.

A new Swedish-inspired coffee shop has opened its doors in Harrogate with ambitious £780,000 plans to roll out the concept across Yorkshire.

Fi:k has renovated 1 Montpellier Gardens, which used to be the home of furniture business Covet. The venture has created eight jobs in the town.

The cafe is working with Leeds-based North Star Coffee Roasters, True Tea in Harrogate, Kokoa hot chocolate suppliers and Jenny Wren’s Bakehouse in Whitby.

Fi:K opened on Saturday and sells Swedish-inspired open sandwiches, salads, artisan pastries and smoothie bowls.

It is named after the Swedish term for cafe “Fi:K” and the Swedish ideal of “fika” which considers making time for family, friends and colleagues every day as essential.

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Vicky Somerville, who used to work for Grantley Hall and Filmore & Union, has taken on the design and marketing for Fi:K. She said:

“We see Fi:k as a fusion of Yorkshire and Swedish ideas, the cafe will very much be about high-quality products, provenance and people.

“Increasingly, customers want to ‘shop’ local and the majority of our ingredients and produce will hail from the North of England, often from small artisan producers.

“Post-lockdown, we all need to treat ourselves to a little indulgence and rediscover time to enjoy being together.”

Ms Somerville believes that the coffee house is set in one of the most characterful buildings in Harrogate. So Fi:K has made the existing stoves, pillars and Victorian windows as focal points.