Shop owner Gill Jones outside The Allotment. Pic: Gill Jones

New Cross residents have a new place to shop for fruit and vegetables as The Allotment, a greengrocers and deli, opens this Monday.

The Allotment, 318 New Cross Road, will open its doors to the public at 10am on October 24 after months of preparation and planning by owner Gill Jones, 42, from Lewisham Way.

Jones decided to create The Allotment after receiving inspiration from a TV news story about greengrocers shown a year ago.

Jones, who worked previously as a gardener, said: “I felt there was no decent place to buy fruit and veg in the immediate area and after much research into existing markets and shops decided there was still a gap in the market for something like this.”

She found the vacant shop on New Cross Road shortly after and decided to take the plunge with the support of her partner Paul.

The Allotment will be stocking a range of products with the main emphasis on fresh fruit and vegetables sourced from Covent Garden market.

There will also be a selection of bread, juices, fresh eggs, biscuits, flowers, cheeses, cooked and cured meats and, what Jones described as, ‘really yummy‘ ice-cream.

Jones explained that the key to The Allotment is being able to respond directly to customer demand: “We want to provide a proper service for people, to interact with them and give them what they really want…We want to create something that’s accessible and affordable for everybody.”

And Jones has been really pleased with the response to the shop so far: “The feedback has been so encouraging, people stop and look through the shop window every few minutes. It’s really exciting!”

“With the London Particular opening and the New Cross House being refurbished it feels like New Cross is changing and it’s just nice to be part of that change,” she added.

Opening times for The Allotment (subject to change):

Monday-Friday 10am-7pm

Saturday 10am-5pm

Sunday 10am- 3am

Visit their facebook or twitter pages for more information.

http://twitter.com/#!/The_AllotmentNC

http://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Allotment/252763211426997