A small business selling hot drinks to customers from a former unused broom cupboard at Poulton-le-Fylde station in Lancashire is steadily expanding across the North West of England.

Since opening their first outlet at Poulton-le-Fylde in the spring of 2011, Jason Cotillard and Jeremy Clark’s business, Le Feast, has become a small chain of barista coffee shops.

Offering passengers a range of fresh, high-quality food and drink from local suppliers, including Bury Lane Bakery, Lancashire Crisps and Rivington Meats, they also serve products in partnership with a former member of staff and a Lancashire bus driver who bakes in his spare time.

The business, with its unique style of yellow branding, seems to be gradually making its mark in a premium corner of the market.

10 years after their first venture at Poulton-le-Fylde, a second outlet opened at Blackpool North in 2021. Since then, two more outlets have opened around Greater Manchester, one in Rochdale and the other in Bolton.

The company now has four outlets and 25 employees that over the course of a year, sells 150,000 hot drinks, 25,000 sandwiches and 15,000 slices of cake, giving the small chain business an annual turnover of £1.5m.

There are plans to open a fifth outlet of the chain by the end of this year, with train operator Northern welcoming the decision on the expansion of this small business.

Northern is actively encouraging businesses to set up on railway premises at stations.

Not only will it help small businesses grow and expand, but it will also help fill the 29 retail units that are currently vacant across the Northern rail network.

“The rail network works for us, it gives us guaranteed footfall and we can get to know our customers.

We really enjoy being part of a station community – getting to know the staff and on-board traincrew as well as the community groups and volunteers that help care for the station.

We’re also really proud of our staff and the contribution they make to Le Feast – both those that have been with us for many years and those who are just starting out in their career and need to get some practical work experience under their belt.

We invest considerably in training, in-house but also externally sending the team on management courses, university business training and marketing initiatives, all of which comes back to the business in a positive way.”

Jason Cotillard and Jeremy Clark owners of Le Feast