Bringing rock to Aphrodite
An old-fashioned English sweet shop has opened its doors in the tourist area of Limassol
Several times a week I take my baby for a walk along the seafront in the tourist area of Limassol. Of some shops in the area for rent, one has recently opened as Linda’s Sweet Shop, which specialises in jar sweets from the UK, along with Pick’n’Mix, chocolates, greeting cards (special offer: 40c each or 3 for £1) and even a charity book swap (20c) to support the Malcolm Cat Sanctuary. Linda Kelly, from Gloucestershire, explained that she and her husband had been given the idea by her mother, who had failed to find a decent sweet shop in Cyprus. So, with a friend, Linda decided to look for a sweet shop. She walked from the tourist area of Limassol to the old port and back and couldn’t see a single one… so the seed was sown.
Just four months ago, Linda and her husband sold their house and moved lock, stock and barrel to Cyprus. After more than 20 years in administration, Linda was ready for a change and although she had no experience in sweets, the courses she had taken in marketing started paying off when it came to promoting the shop.
For starters, everything is so clean you could eat off the floor. The air-conditioning runs almost 24/7 in the summer to ensure the sweets don’t melt or stick together and it’s refreshing to see everything nicely stocked. A water dispenser stands to one side, for thirsty patrons, some of whom travel from as far away as Paphos and Larnaca.
She has big plans for her sweet shop, including becoming somewhat mobile in the future in order to attend fetes and fairs and come Christmas this year, she’ll be stocking a wide variety of boxed chocolates and large 1.5kg tins of chocolates from the UK – such as Quality Street and Celebrations – for a very reasonable “around £12”. Next year, specialised chocolates will also be added to her selection. But her favourites are the jarred sweets including Sherbet Lemons, Sour Plums, Bullseyes, Buttered Brazils, Mint Imperials, Aniseed Twists, Stem Ginger and Sweet Peanut, to name but a few. Additional shelving is in the store room just waiting to be put up to house as many jars as Linda can get her hands on. Other hard-to-get items include Caramac and Drifter bars, sherbet (with dipping sticks), and fresh liqorice, both hard and soft.
When asked if she takes special orders, Linda laughs warmly and nods. “Yes, we take orders.” Her daughter, it seems has been recruited to traipse the UK in search of her mum’s “special orders” and with her partner working for DHL, all successful discoveries are swiftly shipped over by courier – at a discount, of course, though the larger consignments are naturally sent with containers.
The conversation drifts to who she’s hoping to attract as customers. “Mostly the expat community, but of course, we want tourists as well, which is why we open evenings too in the summer.”
While I’m checking out the different names and flavours on the jars, I notice in addition to the small prepared party bags, a small table with some lollipops, liqorice and candy necklaces. The sign above these little rainbow dust straws says 1c. Surely that can’t be correct – nothing is only 1c in Cyprus. But it’s true. In fact, the rainbow dust straws (which are really sherbet) are not the only items under 50c – everything is! “Flying Saucers” are 2c, lollipops are 5c and gobstoppers are 10c. I get stuck on the gobstoppers. Do they really work? Linda tells me that they last two hours non-stop, are fruit flavoured and change colour with each layer. “It’s a pretty cheap way to keep a child quiet.”
As it turns out, the most expensive single sweet in the shop is 50c – and is Aphrodite’s Rock (all the way from the UK), making it a very affordable stop even for large families. The jarred sweets are 85c/100g and the Pick’n’Mix is 70c/100g. “But you could have just one, if you wanted. You don’t have to take 100g,” Linda says.
I comment that the only people missing out now are those on diets, to which Linda points out that she stocks several different types of sugarless sweets, and with her next shipment will have no less than 12 different jarred sweets and a range of jellies without sugar.
As I’m writing this, I’m munching away on some of Linda’s sweets. I only saw her the other day and like a magnet I’ve been back three times already! For some of us, there is no hope… nor such a thing as too many sweets.
Linda’s Sweet Shop
Shop 5, Lordos Sea Front Apartments, Germasogeia, Limassol.
Tel.: 25 315520
