The Dogs Bakery and Cafe: Popular Yorkshire cafe that attracted visitors from all over UK closes doors after two years leaving locals shocked and heartbroken

Business owner, Emma Ashurst, from Harrogate, first had the idea for The Dogs Bakery and Cafe in early 2022 when her French bulldog puppy Lola was ill and taken to the vet.

The vet told her not to feed her shop-bought treats and to make the treats herself instead.

Out of necessity to make her puppy feel better, she began using all natural ingredients without additives or animal by-products to bake special treats.

It was her eldest son Henry who convinced her to sell her products. Henry came up with the brand name, her youngest son Ollie created her website and despite initial scepticism, Ms Ashurst started giving her homemade dog treats to neighbours.

She also sold birthday cakes and Christmas and birthday boxes online which took off and in May 2022 she secured a space to open her bakery and cafe.

Sadly, due to the cost of living crisis and the footfall dwindling, Ms Ashurst was forced to close the business after two years.

“It’s a multitude of things really, but for me the main thing was the lack of footfall,” she said.

“I think people just don’t have the money, they’re spending it on more important things because at the end of the day, coming out, having a coffee or something to eat, buying treats is a luxury.

“When I decided to close it I was devastated, I couldn’t stop crying, I couldn’t speak to anyone, I couldn’t put any posts up on social media.

“I just felt like I had failed but I knew I hadn’t because I worked to start with seven days a week and then I started closing on a Tuesday because I needed to give myself a day off.

“I put my whole body and soul into it, at the end of the day it wasn’t meant to be but never say never.”

As well as selling her homemade treats, she also hosted afternoon teas for dogs and their owners and ‘doggy speed dating’ events.

“It was somewhere for people to come with their dogs,” Ms Ashurst told The Yorkshire Post.

“I [created] freshly made dog treats, ranging from peanut butter paws to vegan cheese bones, chocolate bones, doggy cupcakes etc.

“The doggy afternoon tea took off so well. A lot of people who go out for afternoon tea can’t take their dogs, so it’s nice [to have] somewhere that does a really lovely afternoon tea for the humans as well as the pooches.

“People didn’t have to have dogs who came in; we had a lot of people who were carers that brought people who suffered from dementia because they remembered having dogs.

“It was so lovely for them to come in, they would chat to other people who had dogs and it really made them smile which was amazing.”

The bakery and cafe were a huge success.

“We had many visitors from all over the country who came to visit, which was really nice,” Ms Ashurst said.

“I had people booking a weekend in Harrogate just to come and have afternoon tea with their dog; from Dorset to Brighton to Manchester.

“A few people who were living in Scotland were coming down for the weekend and managed to get a B&B and they said are you open because we are going to work it around your shop [opening hours] and availability for afternoon tea.”

Many of her regular customers have been devastated by the news.

“My loyal customers were always there. They were quite shocked and saddened,” Ms Ashurst said.

“I’ve got customers who are now friends, over my short time there it was amazing.

“People have been heartbroken, dogs know where they’re going; It only takes them one time to know where they’re going and they remember.

“I still get messages now with pictures of [dogs] that sat outside and they’re asking when I’m going to open. It’s really sad. My loyal customers were always there. They were quite shocked and saddened.”

Ms Ashurst will continue to host doggy speed dating events and is currently writing a children’s book.

“The Doggy Speed Dating [event] was for single people with their dog who wanted to meet other people who had a dog,” she said.

“There’s nothing worse than meeting someone and they don’t like dogs or they’re allergic to dogs when you have a dog.

Despite the shop being closed, Ms Ashurst will continue to sell her doggy treats online and is hoping to sell her products in places such as Pets At Home and to expand across the UK.

After some time she is open to the possibility of bringing back the bakery and cafe.

“Never say never,” she said.

“At the moment I’m concentrating on my online shop and hopefully I’ll be doing some rebranding of my biscuit pouches.

“I’ve had a few people say they would happily stock my biscuits in their shops and cafes so that’s super lovely.

“My goal is to take the biscuit business, which is very popular, into the wider population of the UK. I’m hoping that my biscuits will eventually get into the bigger stores

“It’s been really good and you never know I might be back with another cafe further down the line.

“I want to thank everyone who was super loyal over the time I was [open].”