Simon Baynes, the Member of Parliament for Clwyd South, welcomed Louise Lidford and Nichola Hembury of the Two Doves Café and Gift Shop in Overton in Clwyd South to the House of Commons on Tuesday 14th November to celebrate their MP HERoes Awards for their hard work in running the business and thereby creating a community hub.
Established by Louise and Nichola in October 2019, the Two Doves Café and Gift Shop in Overton serves breakfast, lunch, and afternoon tea as well as a range of hot and cold beverages. The Gift Shop specialises in products from in and around Clwyd South and the rest of Wales. Louise and Nichola have been close friends for over thirty years with previous experience owning their own businesses, working in corporate law and blue-chip companies.
Mr Baynes nominated Louise and Nichola for the MP HERoes Awards in recognition of their hard work in creating a venue that serves the rural community in Overton. The Awards recognise, encourage, celebrate, and support female enterprise in every area of the UK and highlight female entrepreneurship across all sectors and industries. During their visit Louise and Nichola met Mr Baynes at a reception for MP HERoes businesswomen where they discussed government support for small businesses and their continued hard work running the café.
The Two Doves Café and Gift Shop is open every Tuesday-Thursday 9am-3pm and Friday-Saturday 9am-4pm. To view their menus and find out more please see https://www.2doves.co.uk/
Speaking after the Reception, Louise Lidford and Nichola Hembury said:
“We were truly honoured to visit the House of Commons and to be given the opportunity to meet such inspiring and diverse women with whom we’ve already made connections. The recognition from our MP is absolutely wonderful. After the 4 years have passed in our cosy corner of Clwyd South, we can't help but reflect on the warmth and joy each of our customers, dogs and staff have brought to our community hub in Overton.
Our customers are either regular morning visitors, weekend explorers, members of our groups and clubs or people who simply drop by to unwind after a long day. Their choice to make our coffee shop part of their routine has turned it into a true community home. We're honoured to be the backdrop for their stories, celebrations, and quiet moments of reflection. We thank them all for being the heart and soul of our coffee shop. We look forward to continuing this journey with them. Their smiles fuel our passion to create a space where everyone feels welcome and cherished.
Here's to more laughter, more connections, and of course, more coffee in the days to come.”
Mr Baynes, speaking after the Reception, said:
“Louise and Nichola work incredibly hard to serve the Overton community through the Two Doves Café and Gift shop and I was very pleased to nominate them for the MP HERoes programme in recognition of their hard work in creating a venue that serves the rural community in Overton. The Award recognises the exceptional effort they put in to keeping their business going and making everybody welcome there.
New people always enjoy visiting the café when I am in Overton and its continued success is completely down to their hard work in making it such a popular venue. It was great to meet them in the House of Commons and I look forward to my next visit.”
