National pet retailer Jollyes opened its doors in Harrogate today.

The store, which is located on Hookstone Park, near Morrisons, is one of 95 Jollyes sites in the UK.

It sells pet foods, toys, bedding and vitamins and also offers a pet grooming service called The Jolly Groomer.

Jollyes caters for a wide range of pets ranging from dogs and cats to chipmunks and aquatic turtles.

Ten staff are employed at the Harrogate site. Branch manager Dawn Jenkins told the Stray Ferret:

“The store has a bit of everything for every owner.

“It’s been a lot of hard work, so to see people in the store and hearing the positive feedback makes it all worth it.”

Jollyes, which has over 1,000 employees across the UK, plans to open 10 more stores by the middle of 2024.

The company held a competition with the Stray Ferret to give one person and their dog the chance to officially open the new Harrogate store, as well as take part in a trolley dash.

The lucky winners, Dawn McLean and her Dachshund Alan, helped to cut the red ribbon and grabbed a new bed and some treats during their dash.

“What a store – it’s amazing”, Ms McLean added.

Pic: Ms McLean and Alan.

James Wye, regional support manager at Jollyes, also said:

“The store was about a three-month turnaround.

“That includes looking at the initial plans and imagining how the store will be set out, to ordering stock.

“I’m really happy with the opening – I think it’s gone very well.”

Jollyes Harrogate is open seven days per week.

Read more:

Nationwide pet retailer Jollyes is to open a store in Harrogate this month as part of expansion plans.

The store, which will be situated at Hookstone Park, near Morrisons, will open on September 29 and employ 10 people. It will include a grooming spa called the Jolly Groomer.

Jollyes was founded in 1971 and employs more than 1,000 staff at 93 sites, many of which run community clinics offering vaccinations.

The company plans to open 10 more stores by the middle of 2024, taking its total number of sites to 103.

Inside Jollyes. Pic: Professional Images/@ProfImages

News of the Harrogate venture was included in a trading update today that revealed the company recorded sales of £33.7 million in the first quarter of 2024 — 34% higher than the £25.3m figure for last year’s first quarter.

Growth was partly fuelled by an increase in sign-ups to the firm’s pet club, which rewards customers for sales.

Chief executive Joe Wykes said:

“Our performance in our opening quarter of this financial year underlines the effectiveness of the strategy we’ve put in place – delivering exceptional value to our customers, powered by the most knowledgeable colleagues in the industry.”

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This story is sponsored by Harvey George.

The UK’s largest bespoke bathroom vanity unit manufacturer has won the right to use the coveted Made in Britain logo. 

Harvey George, which is based on Hookstone Park in Harrogate, went through an exhaustive authentication process to achieve the distinction, which is administered by the Made in Britain not-for-profit organisation. 

The company’s application to use the familiar red-white-and-blue logo was approved because all its products are made here in Yorkshire.  

Sophie Griffiths, Finance Director, said: 

“We’re absolutely delighted that we can now use the Made in Britain mark. It’s internationally recognised and helps customers identify products made here in the UK. In a market awash with imports, this really sets us apart as a great British manufacturer.” 

Harvey George makes all its bathroom vanity units to order at its Hull factory, and its range can be seen in its 10,000 sq ft showroom on Hookstone Park. 

Harvey George’s showroom can be found on Hookstone Park, off Leeds Road in Harrogate.

The firm offers 15 designs, and customers also specify the size, the drawer front, the handles, and what kind of sink they want – single or twin, sit-on or undermount – from a selection of luxury brands, including Hendel & Hendel and House of Rohl. They come in 16 basic colours, but Harvey George can match them to any paint a customer may already have. 

Harvey George’s professionals can work with customers to find the perfect combination of options and turn them into beautiful designs and stunning finished products.

The lead time is six weeks, but for a small express fee that can be halved. 

Andy Grice, Showroom Manager, said: 

“What makes Harvey George different is that we cut out the middle-man. We don’t buy these units from anyone else – we make them individually for each of our customers. Anything you can imagine, we can make. 

“We’ve compared prices and we’ve found we’re between 10 and 30% cheaper than our competitors, and typically also have a shorter lead time. 

“We’re also very efficient. Even the pieces of wood we cut out of the vanity unit tops are made into chopping boards!” 

Find out more: 

Make an appointment and visit Harvey George’s Harrogate showroom to discuss your bespoke furniture needs over a complimentary drink at The Inspiration Centre, Unit 3, Hookstone Park, Harrogate HG2 7DB. Telephone: 01423 810070. 

A major national plumbing and heating company opened its first branch in the Harrogate district today.

City Plumbing, which is open to trade and the public, is based in one of five units at the former Joe Manby building at Hookstone Park, Harrogate.

Councillor Victoria Oldham, mayor of the district, cut a ribbon to formally open the branch for business this morning.

The mayor cuts the ribbon.

City Plumbing, which is part of the Highbourne Group, employs about 4,500 staff at some 360 branches in the UK and Ireland. The Harrogate site currently has five staff.

Besides selling plumbing and heating products, the new branch also has kitchen and bathroom tops and a range of renewable heating products, including air source heat pumps and solar panels.

Free food and drinks are available to customers visiting today.

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Kasia Demko, City Plumbing’s regional manager who lives in Harrogate, said until today the company’s nearest sites were in Leeds and York, adding:

“We have always wanted to be in Harrogate — we have been looking for the right spot in town. We are very much looking forward to welcoming customers.”

Branch manager Stuart Johnson, who has a background in the plumbing and electrical sector locally, said the company was particularly keen to promote its energy-efficiency products because that was a growing market.

Staff at today’s opening

Jackie Wilson, property manager at Hornbeam Park Developments, which owns the former Joe Manby site, said:

“We are delighted to see City Plumbing up and running as the anchor tenant at this development. There has been a lot of interest, with two of the remaining four units taken already. I am sure that City Plumbing’s presence will serve as a catalyst to attract tenants for the remaining two units.“

This article is sponsored by Harvey George

As the UK’s largest manufacturer of bespoke bathroom vanity units, Harvey George can create your dream bathroom in any colour scheme or design.

Customers can choose beautiful furniture in any size, colour or finish, including painted and solid wood.

And all the stunning ranges on offer can be viewed at the company’s impressive 10,000sq ft showroom at Hookstone Park in Harrogate.

Sophie Griffiths, partner at Harvey George, said:

“We have the area’s largest painted range of bespoke vanities on display. You can get any colour you like. We find that people want that full flexibility.

“In the last four years we have made well in excess of 8,000. I don’t think there is a colour we haven’t painted our vanity units and that can be any brand of paint. You can bring a swatch into us and we will colour match it.

“People can come into the showroom, touch and feel the units, talk about their ideas and speak to the team and get some advice.

“There really is nothing like it in the region.”

Harvey George’s team of more than 30 craftsmen make and design furniture to the exacting needs of customers throughout the UK and beyond.

This lifts the restrictions of what is available ‘off the shelf’ at other high street bathroom stores.

The business prides itself on making premium furniture accessible and affordable –  with something for all budgets and design requirements.

And when it comes to current bathroom trends, Sophie said reeded oak was extremely popular.

She said:

“Oak-based vanity units that have a ‘heritage look’ are having a surge at the moment. “

All the latest bathroom designs are on display in the showroom, which showcases porcelain and natural stone tiles, as well as bespoke marble and luxury flooring.

Harvey George has created floor and wall displays that will inspire and allow customers to be more creative in their spaces when choosing their furniture.

There is also a large range of baths, basins and taps from the world’s best brands on offer.

The new year brings exciting new developments for the business, with a new kitchen and homeware department set to launch in January.

Sophie added:

“With the launch of a new kitchen department in the new year and other exciting plans to come, our showroom truly is a destination worthy of a visit when designing for the home.”

Make an appointment and visit Harvey George’s Harrogate showroom to discuss your bespoke furniture needs over a complimentary drink at The Inspiration Centre, Unit 3, Hookstone Park, Harrogate, HG2 7DB. Telephone: 01423 810070.

An air ambulance landed at Harrogate’s Hookstone Park this morning to treat a person who fell at an industrial unit.

Yorkshire Air Ambulance said in a statement:

“At 08.38am we dispatched our Nostell aircraft to a fall in Harrogate.

“Our critical care team provided on-scene support and the patient was taken to hospital by land ambulance.”

A Stray Ferret reader spotted the air ambulance in the Morrisons car park at around 9am this morning.

She said the crew went to join paramedics already on the scene at warehouses round the corner.

The Yorkshire Ambulance Service said:

“We received a call at 8.26am this morning to reports of a person who had fallen from a roof in the Hookstone Park area of Harrogate.”

The extent of the patient’s injuries is not currently known.

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