Coffee van 'Gypsys Brew' opens at Sheffield beauty spot after lockdown love story blossomed into new business

A Sheffield couple have opened up a new coffee van after following their romantic dream to start a new business during lockdown.
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Bianca Silcock, a yoga teacher and Rhiannon Randle, a nursing worker from Crookes, launched Gypsys Brew to showcase local ethical and sustainable delicacies from the city.

The business is located at the main entrance of Bolehills Park next to the basketball courts; this is also supported by the Sheffield City Councils ‘Better Parks’ initiative.

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“Amid all the bad things that happened in the last year or so, we still met, fell in love and started following our passion to open up a business.

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Gypsys Brew

“This has now blossomed into a lovely family affair with our cat Molly and dog Gypsy and we are hoping to spread a little bit of magic, love and light with every brew,” the couple said.

Every weekend, the service offers drinks and snacks from Dark Woods Coffee, the Suited Baker and 4eyes Patisserie, from early morning to late afternoon.

“We are very conscious of the environment and use a company called decent packaging who take care of the recycling, with the left-over coffee is given to locals for allotments and farms. We are passionate about sustainability and we try our best to display that.

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“We absolutely love Crookes. We wake up every day and still can’t believe we live in the luckiest place ever.

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Gypsys Brew

“This is our family park, we go here every day and we really wanted to do something for our community,” the couple said.

However, setting up a new business during lockdown had its own challenges, Rhiannon explained.

“As Bianca was made redundant in August from her corporate job, this allowed us time to reflect and think about what’s really important in life,” she said.

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The couple said they’re also in the process of setting up a scheme to help those who have struggled as a result of the pandemic.

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Gypsy

“We want to create a way where those that have done well during lockdown can offer something, maybe buy a coffee or cake. They can then leave it behind for those who had a hard time to come and collect it for free,” Bianca said.

The couple hopes to expand their business into supplying small events and weddings across the city at the end of this year or the following year.

“For now we are taking it slowly as it’s a new business. The response has been brilliant and everyone had really lovely things to say. So exciting things are happening very soon,” they said.

You can contact Gypsys Brew on Instagram at @gypsysbrewco or email [email protected]

The artwork below was designed by Liah Edwards, a Sheffield artist.

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