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War of the roses as café is told to stop selling flowers
Petition urges rethink of 'blooming crazy' flower selling ban
Renzo with his flower display which he has been forced
to remove |
AN organic café owner has been banned from selling
flowers by Camden Council after a rival florist objected to
the competition.
The Town Hall last week insisted the owner of Wild Organic in
Prince of Wales Road, Primrose Hill, remove the offending blooms
immediately as it had to “protect competition in the area”.
The ban on Renzo Khan was implemented three months after he
started his flower-selling enterprise. Now 57 of his customers
have signed a petition backing the former Harrods window-dresser’s
right to sell the blooms.
Renzo said: “I’m a new business, I’m not selling
drugs, I’m helping the community. Valentines Day is coming
up. My customers have already ordered from me, they’ve
already paid. They will be very disappointed. This is not a
good message from Camden Council.”
The council says the flowers are in contravention of his lease.
Renzo, an interior designer, who only began selling the blooms
at the request of his customers, says he has been told by Camden’s
property services division not to bother applying to change
his lease as any request will be turned down.
He said: “On Kentish Town Road, off-licenses are open 24
hours, coffee shops are given permission to open next to each
other. My shop is far away from the other florist – you
can’t even see it from here.”
A Camden Council spokeswoman said: “The council has received
a complaint from a florist located near the Wild Organic Café
pertaining to the fact that they are selling flowers. In order
to protect existing businesses within the same area from competition,
the council has therefore asked the Wild Organic to stop selling
flowers with immediate effect.”
Asked about the Town Hall’s policy to protect businesses,
the spokeswoman refused to comment further.
She did add that Renzo was welcome to apply to change his lease.
She said: “The lease provided by the council states the
requirements and terms for the trade run on the premises. The
leaseholder is in possession of a written document stating the
guidelines for the business which can be run on the premises.”
Neighbours have come out in their droves to support Renzo, writing
letters to the New Journal and putting their names to his petition.
Teacher Amanda Trevor-Roberts, who lives in Hadley Street, said:
“This shop has transformed our lives. It’s one of
the few shops that sells healthy food rather than alcohol. The
flowers really make the street look pretty.
“It can be a bit threatening sometimes round here but they
made it more welcoming.”
Comments written on the petition, which was started last week,
included “the shop adds something beautiful and positive
to our streets” and “the flowers and shopfront really
lift the spirits of the community”.
One signatory asked: “Instead of minding the flowers, why
not concentrate on more serious matters which cause trouble
in Prince of Wales Road?” |
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