The History of Sweets - 9th June
A Talk by Martin Peet
Martin Peet is descended from generations of confectionery shopkeepers dating back to 1891. He is the lucky man who has realised every kid’s dream of owning his own sweet shop. Martin founded Mr Simms with a vision of celebrating the best of British sweet shops from times gone by.
The first Mr Simms Olde English Sweet Shoppe was born in 2004 with a unique combination of nostalgia, warmth and childlike wonder that was an instant hit. Whether it is due to nostalgia on the part of older customers or curiosity on the part of younger ones, retro sweet shops have enjoyed considerable success and may now be found in most towns.
It quickly became a franchise business and within 15 years, had grown to over 60 stores in the UK alone, plus a handful overseas and is a story that is still evolving. As part of his presentation, Martin will be bringing along samples of sweets to be given to those in the audience. He presently runs The Chocbox sweet shop in Eccleshall.