Joanne and Peter Grundy opened the doors of the church-based café in October following a refurb, welcoming hungry customers wanting to sample their home cooked food and cakes.
Here, in our latest Business of the Week feature, Joanne tells us why – with support from Glazebury Methodist Church – she wanted to open the café and how family and community play their part in the business.
The family team at Olive Branch Café
What’s your full name?
Joanne Grundy
What’s the name of the business?
Olive Branch Café Glazebury
What’s the address?
Glazebury Methodist Church,
Warrington Road,
Glazebury,
Warrington,
WA3 5LD
Are you the owner/manager?
Co-owner with my husband Peter Grundy
When did you open the business?
October 2024
The view from the café is spectacular
Has it always been in the same location?
Glazebury Methodist Church has been there since 1865. The café has just opened in October last year.
Are you local to the area? Did you grow up here?
I’m originally from Liverpool but have lived here in Glazebury for 28 years since meeting my husband Peter, who has lived here in our village all his life.
Tell me a bit about your business
We are a café based within Glazebury Methodist Church serving home cooked food, cakes and drinks. We are dog friendly and all on one level with access for anyone with mobility issues.
Freshly made cakes are popular with customers
What do you do? What services do you provide?
We provide a safe and warm space for people to come and enjoy our home cooked food. We also have lots going on in our church including Sunday services, breakfast church, pilates and WI to name a few.
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Why did you decide to open your own business?
I have been the treasurer at Glazebury Methodist Church for 15 years and part of the congregation here since I moved to Glazebury 28 years ago. Our church, like many others, struggles due to rising costs so our church council got together with our fabulous minister Katharine Bland and we came up with a plan to try to utilise the building and the space we have. As a church, we couldn’t fund the initial start-up costs for a café so Peter and I decided to fund a refurb and open the café as business renting the space from the church. We set about as a family doing a refurb and opened the doors to the café in October last year.
The café opened inside Glazebury Methodist Church last October
What’s your business background?
I’ve worked in the pub trade for 33 years and Peter has run his own business as a gas safe engineer / property maintenance for 20 years. Between us we have a lot of experience.
I came up through the ranks with Yates’s Wine Lodge and have managed pubs for various pub companies including Greene King and Chicago Rock. In 2022, I decided I wanted a career change and went to work at Bents Garden Centre as a plant advisor – gardening is one of my hobbies. I thoroughly enjoyed working at Bents and only left as the café opportunity arose.
Why this type of business?
I didn’t choose the café – it chose me! Call it fate but the timing was just right and I don’t feel like I’m working – it feels more like socialising.
What makes your business different to others in the same area/field? What sets your business apart from your competitors?
When we developed the menu, we were very aware of the customer base and believe that the home cooked specials are our USP, along with our gluten free and vegan menus. We are family run – every member of the family including our four children are involved in some way from the home baking, building maintenance, social media, grounds maintenance, waiting on tables and washing dishes – and of course sampling the specials to ensure they are good enough to sell! We are dog friendly – we encourage people to call in while out walking the dogs around the beautiful area and we provide a hose to wash the mud away and free dog snacks. We have a great outside area with a covered patio that we can’t wait to use in the summer. You cannot beat our views out the back of the building across the fields!
Home cooked meals are always on the menu
Why do loyal customers return to your business?
We offer full table service and we are consistent which is vitally important. People want to know that we will be open when we say we will and that they will receive the same service and standards every time they visit. We are warm, safe, comfortable and friendly and we welcome anyone including muddy dogs, kids, wheelchairs, prams, mobility scooters.
What’s next? What do the next few months hold for you and your business?
We can’t wait for the lighter nights and hopefully some warmer weather to utilise our lovely outside area and we are also extending our opening times after Easter so that people can call in after school with the kids – watch this space!
Olive Branch Café is on Warrington Road in Glazebury
