Dessert shops create 20 Manchester jobs with £580k funding

Dessert company Creams Café has created jobs in the North West with a six-figure investment.

The London-based gelato and dessert café brand sold a franchise to Manchester business SB Group, which opened a 1,550 sq ft Creams Café in the Piccadilly Gardens area earlier this year and a 3,000 sq ft site more recently in Cheetham Hill.

The two stores, launched with a £580k commercial loan from HSBC, together created 20 new jobs.

SB Group is expecting its investment to deliver a first-year turnover of £1.5m.

Store manager Poz Bal said: “The franchise offers the ability to create our own stamp on the North and we see great potential for further expansion across the North West with the help of this funding.”

HSBC’s Greater Manchester area director, Sam Roden, commented: “The Creams Café franchise is a great example of a business taking advantage of a growing trend.

“SB Group saw the opportunity for a fantastic investment and took it and we are delighted to be able to support them on this exciting venture.”

HSBC commercial relationship manager Darren Martin, based at the bank’s commercial centre in Spinningfields, completed the deal.

The funding package was secured through HSBC’s new £10bn SME fund.