Catford-based businessmen, Kaual Patel, stars in major Coca-Cola campaign after being recognised for turning his family’s convenience store into a cornerstone of the local community.
Torridon Convenience Store, stocks products from small, independent local producers to big brands like Coca-Cola, to serve all the local people in South-East London.
Kaual Patel, is one of six business owners across the country who will feature in this campaign that is spotlighting the invaluable role that corner shops play in their local communities.
His parents bought Torridon Convenience Store in 1984, and since then, the family have built it into a successful business which focusses on meeting the needs of local people. Kaual took ownership in 2000 to further drive this mission, and offers locally-sourced products (such as freshly made bread and cakes to locally grown and vegan patties) from micro-businesses across Catford and the surrounding area.
“If you’re a local producer, there’s a space on my shelf for you” is a mantra for Kaual.
Recently, he has fixed the local church roof in his spare time, and created his own range of products, to give his customers an authentic and unique taste of Catford. This includes products: ‘Torridon Convenience Store IPA – made in collaboration with Brockley Brewery – and his own brand of Gin, which is flavoured with bay leaves from outside his store, and these are both examples of how Kaual is trying to make a real difference.
Kaual said: “Catford is home, and I’m proud to be in a position not just to provide my local community with their daily essentials, but to give something back too.
“What this campaign with Coca-Cola will show people is that running a convenience store is a privilege, and also a responsibility. We’re where we are today because of the loyalty of the people of Catford – and now it’s my job to do everything I can to support the people, the businesses and the community around me.”
It is for these reasons that Kaual has been chosen to be on Coca-Cola’s campaign, celebrating 125 years of their products being sold in Great Britain, and signifies the importance of corner shops and their owners.
He has been photographed by expert, Serena Brown, who has produced a whole gallery for the six entrepreneurs in the campaign which celebrates the commitment, heritage, know-how and personalities behind Britain’s corner shop counters.
Kaual will also be involved in a mini-documentary, produced by director Ross Bolidai, to reveal what’s behind the scenes at these corner shops – that 34% people across Great Britain have described as an essential resource in their everyday life in a recent study by Coca Cola.
Vice President and General Manager of Great Britain & Ireland at Coca-Cola, Dusan Stojankic, said: “We’re proud to be celebrating 125 years since Coca-Cola was first served in Great Britain, and with 97% of our products sold here manufactured and bottled here, we’re invested in local communities. ‘The Bosses’ series is an ode to that, celebrating the businessmen and women ushering in a new era for the vastly underestimated corner shop. We’ll continue to champion and mentor community retailers far into the future, and hope they continue to find a sense of camaraderie through our network.”
Each boss from the series is nominating a local cause to receive a five-figure donation from Coca-Cola who are advocating the importance of these shops, after finding that almost a quarter of Brits depend on them more than any other retailers.
These people are now recognised as ‘key workers’ for being at the hear of British communities for over a century now.
Another Leicester-based entrepreneur, Sunita Aggarwal, was also chosen to feature in the campaign. Read more about her story on our Midlands Gazette site, here.