The Sweetest “Wow” Factor in Stirling

“Wow!” I exclaimed as I suddenly stopped, almost skidding like a Formula 1 car, and turned my head towards the place that caught my attention. Standing out like a dark chocolate bar in the middle of a heap of milky white cream was the most amazing sweet shop I had ever seen, and that’s saying a lot coming from a sweet-toothed girl. My mouth was wide open, so much that even an apple could fit in it, excitement rushed through my veins, blood going to my head making my cheeks blush, and just as suddenly I told my Spanish flatmate: “Mariluz! It’s like in Harry Potter!” And it truly looked like a shop taken out directly from the film. A Nessie made of sweets greeted us at the entrance, while 370 jars of different types of confectionery shone from the shelves inside.

Although many shops in Stirling sell sweets- you can even find some in supermarkets- there are only two shops specialised in selling confectionery. Mr. Simms Olde Sweet Shop, in Port Street, is one of them and though looking as if it had come out from another age, with its wooden shelves and flooring, it’s only been two years since it opened. Being a franchise, and the only one in Scotland, every single part of it was made specially for the kind of sweets they sell – yes, even the shelves were tailor-made to fit every bag, jar and package-, and a variety of unique sweets they have.

Full of colourful confectionary, unique chocolate bars, fudge of countless flavours and even sweets Scottish people hadn’t seen for years, walking around the shop I felt like entering a different world, it wouldn’t have surprised me at all if an Oompa-Loompa suddenly appeared in front of us. Our reactions weren’t new to the owner of the shop, John Ferrie, who admitted that they could spot new customers a mile away thanks to what he described as the WOW factor. Adults and children alike came into the shop with wide sparkling eyes as they tried to take in what they were seeing.

The music playing in the shop seemed in beat with the hustle and bustle inside that day, though sometimes it would become quiet when people left after their purchase. The fact that tourism has been down this year may have affected businesses in town but that’s not what worried Mr Simms. “Our biggest challenge is fitting everything into the shop. We’ve already got so many different products that if I try to find new ones I won’t have space to put them” he told me while smiling. For him, running a sweet shop is fun and he feels proud about his unique business. For me, the fact that this sweet shop is in Stirling makes me fly in happiness.

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