Yahoo News The charming coastal town near Liverpool attracting Taylor Swift fans in droves
Just when it seemed the Taylor Swift fandom was winding down, following the conclusion of the European leg of the American popstar's Era's Tour, it appears she has made a lasting impact in one part of the country.
A shop and cafe in the Anglesey community of Beaumaris have centred their business around all things Taylor Swift, and it's proving to be a hit. Still known as The Mock Turtle, a nod to Alice in Wonderland, the shop now sells Taylor Swift-inspired items.
The adjoining café, where they whip up an array of Taylor Swift-themed food and drink including homemade cookies, is named 'August', after one of Taylor's popular songs.
Located just across from the castle in the Welsh seaside town, the business has seen a surge in popularity in recent weeks, becoming a social media sensation. A TikTok creator shared a glimpse of the shop's interior, catapulting the business into the spotlight not just in Wales, but across the UK and beyond.
"We had some people in from Germany the other day," Lotti Summers, the business owner, told Wales Online. "I have tried to say people can go on the website to order things if they like but lots of people just want to visit and it's just become a destination in itself.
Initially not a Swiftie, she only recently began diversifying her business with Harry Styles-themed products, capitalized on the Taylor Swift phenomenon that surged about a year ago by incorporating Swift-related items for fans.
The café - aptly named after Lotti's favourite Taylor song, plays the singer's music all day and offers an array of memorabilia, confessed: "I love her now. And everyone who works here is Taylor Swift obsessed as well. One of our girls in the coffee shop loves her loads, and drives an hour to come and work here. And she makes great coffee too."
She disclosed their booming success was fueled by a viral TikTok, saying: "There was a TikTok that was made and it just went viral so it's all been growing into a monster over the last few weeks, and we've had huge deliveries from the Netherlands and America."
Their online presence escalated following a clever marketing move: "We also did an advert with the lady who made the TikTok who came in for afternoon tea and put it on Facebook and it just exploded, and we're only tiny but we are now able to employ about eight people."
Local suppliers and bakers benefit from their association with Lotti's coffee shop, which has reportedly enhanced the community's spirit. Lotti noted the positive atmosphere, adding: "Everyone just leaves with a massive smile on their face.
"When people see the hand-painted Taylor Swift biscuits they get so excited and come in and buy them by the dozen, can't keep up. The cruise ships are in at the moment and when people come in they're like, 'Taylor Swift? Here?' They just love it.
"When people come in, all they want to talk about is Taylor. All day the music's playing, and we've just had an artist come in and decorate the walls with a typewriter and the Christian Louboutin boots that she wears on stage and the whole place is full of drawings and artwork that have got Taylor on.
"Even the coffee cups have got Taylor on. And everyone that comes in is really sweet and they swap friendship bracelets with the staff and everything. I've not met a nasty Swiftie yet."
Before launching her current venture post-pandemic, Lotti was at the helm of an accountancy firm. However, she has embraced her new direction without regret.
She continued: "I sold the company about two years ago, and we'd opened the shop just before I sold up. We came out of lockdown and I was just sick of accountancy because I was doing like 80 hour weeks during lockdown.
"I'd always loved collecting artist's memorabilia as a kid so I just thought I'm going to open a shop and make it a bit quirky and a bit different and it was always very pop art-led with the Beatles and a lot of ABBA and funky stuff and then I just started doing Taylor Swift at the same time as Harry Styles and it just took it to another level."
For more information about the business or to browse the Taylor Swift collection, visit The Mock Turtle's website.
