Toast of the Town

A little over five years ago, Jo and Dermot Seale decided that it was time to diversify and strike out in a fresh new direction. The couple, who lived in Okehampton and had been working in the financial services sector, wanted a new challenge that would enable them to give something back to the local community.

The couple had come across Toast in the heart of Okehampton, a café that had, in a previous life, been an unused former Edwardian cinema. Their vision was to take the café and transform it into a fabulous, stylish space where people could meet, relax, have great coffee and a bite to eat, while chatting to friends, reading the paper or browsing the internet.

After 6 months of restyling and enhancements Toast, as it is today, emerged: a chic: large, light and airy venue with an open-plan ground floor café, delicatessen, gift shop and a first-floor venue.

“It was such an exciting move for us”, says Jo. “Instantly, we could cater for the needs of all types of customer, be that baby groups upstairs with their own space for mums and dads with their little ones, passing visitors looking for good drink, food and service, or families and friends seeking for a venue to celebrate significant milestones.”

Never ones for standing still Jo and Dermot have diversified the business. “We have a wonderful gift shop with a selection of artisan items created by local craftsmen and artists, and a delicatessen, which means that visitors can pick up tasty treats, cheese, breads and charcuterie,” says Jo. “We’ve also developed a really popular wellness yoga studio, which is available for hire upstairs, which took two years to realise, but is proving a big hit.”

She adds: “We pride ourselves on our reputation for the best coffee in Okehampton and offer a good selection of gluten free, dairy-free, vegan and vegetarian options, as well as traditional favourites such as sour-dough open sandwiches."

“Breakfast is always busy as our cheese and ham croissants are much sought after. Our toasted ciabattas come with a selection of fresh and delicious fillings, which are always popular, as are our smoothies. Combined with a wide variety of dishes, we do our very best to provide a great selection of light bites."

“Afternoon teas are a particular favourite among our customers, so we put on a selection of finger sandwiches, quiche, macaroons, mini cakes, cheese scones with butter, lemon drizzle cake, Victoria sponge cake, fruit scones, jam and, of course, clotted cream."

“In the evening, Toast becomes a great hang-out for customers looking to relax, chat and chill out. We have our own range of cocktails on site and serve everything from French 39s to Cosmopolitans. We also have an enviable selection of craft gins to keep up with the huge demand for gin and tonics of all types."

“It makes for a fun atmosphere at night, especially when we put on events, such as comedy nights, gin evenings, or our annual Edwardian evening. It also lends itself perfectly to private hire for parties, celebrations and special occasions. ”

With such a busy and vibrant business to contend with, Jo and Dermot recognised early on that they needed a helping hand with tax advice and business guidance, which is where Simpkins Edwards came in.

“We’d worked with Simpkins Edwards previously”, says Jo. “They’d advised us on tax compliance for our financial services businesses, so we knew they were very good at what they did."

“When we talked to Seb about Toast, he instantly grasped our goals and aspirations for the business, swiftly outlining strategic accountancy advice to put the business in a strong position."

“Simpkins Edwards’ pro-active, solutions driven, advice has been a breath of fresh air, and it gives us the capacity to focus fully on driving the business forward.”

Jo adds: “We use their set-fee monthly service package which, in addition to the usual tax and accounting compliance, provides bookkeeping and payroll, regular profit and loss reports, cloud-based management accounts and quarterly planning meetings. This gives us the control we need to run the business efficiently."

“With Simpkins Edwards’ help our books are in order, we’re Making Tax Digital for VAT compliant, and we have up to date management information. We’re able to extract profit tax-efficiently and we have a team of experts on hand to give guidance on matters such as PAYE and auto-enrolment.”

Looking towards the future, Jo says: “We have an appetite to grow and diversify as a business, to meet the needs of the town and its visitors. Our next venture will further enhance the downstairs areas with more seating and an extended delicatessen area. With Simpkins Edwards on our team we know that these goals are well within our grasp.”