Looking at the people who keep the wheels of commerce turning on the Island;
features, profiles, achievements and stories with a human dimension.
LEFT: A work-in-progress:
Benn inside the building
at the Bungalow.
STEPPING UP!
Betty Pie Co and Manx Cider Co take over former motorcycle
museum building at The Bungalow…
by Simon Richardson
Entrepreneurial Peel couple, Benn and Vicky
Quirk are poised to take their successful
businesses – Betty Pie Co and The Manx Cider
Company – to a higher level!
create a real destination café for both locals and
visitors. We have a clear vision about how we
want it to look and have been viewing a number
of locations in the UK for added inspiration.”
They are due to take over the iconic buildings
on the slopes of Snaefell, that were the former
home to Murray’s Motorcycle Museum, and
have applied for planning consent to convert
the premises into a café and retail outlet with
small-scale manufacturing capability on site.
Due to the scale of work required before
opening fully in 2020, they aim to open a fun,
simple pop up canteen during the TT and MGP
periods this year.
There’s much to do in the cavernous former
military building, which has been empty since
the museum vacated in 2006, but Benn and
Vicky are undaunted: “I must admit to one or
two sleepless nights at first,” admitted Benn.
“But we can now see the huge potential to
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“There is a huge amount of work to be done,
but the plan is to retain the building’s character
and integrity, added Benn.”
Currently both Betty Pie Co and The Manx Cider
company operate from business units in Peel,
but the intention is to move all production to the
new site.
Benn, who heads up the multi-award winning
Manx Cider Company, currently produces
around 7,000 litres a year, which he supplies to
local pubs and bars. Vicky is head of the Betty
Pie Company, which produces thousands of
delicious handmade pies each year. They are
sold from the company’s distinctive, vintage
‘Betty’ caravan, and served at weddings, special
occasions, and even huge corporate events:
“The business has grown to the point where we
literally can’t produce more than we do. Having
both an outlet for the pies in our own café and
space for a production unit on site will be great,”
said Vicky.
Both Benn and Vicky are examples of the new
Manx artisans who are pioneering Manx food
and drink. Both are committed to using the best
Manx produce wherever possible. Both Betty
Pie Co and the Manx Cider Co are a truly family
affair, with Benn’s Dad, Mike Quirk, helping out
across both sides of the business. The couple
also has three young children, Luka, Mags and
Illy and Sid the Cockapoo.
“We know the weather at the Bungalow can be a
bit wild at times, but that’s part of the appeal,” said
Vicky. We want to create a unique and inviting
space for people to enjoy all year round whatever
the good old Manx climate throws at us!”