Ramesh Shingadia has opened a second shop, one year after his Southwater store scooped the Overall Best Shop award at the Independent Achievers Academy.

He plans to run the 1,400sq ft Londis store in Caterways, West Sussex, with his son, Amish. The family took over the store earlier this year, which was “very run down”, and began surveying local residents to find out what they wanted. Food to go, chilled food, a free ATM and a post office topped the list.

“The ACS identifies a post office as the number one asset that most communities are looking for and convenience stores are the second, so together it’s a great combination,” he told Retail Express.

The store held an opening party for local residents on December 5 with food tasting, face painting and goody bags.

“We’ve been looking for a second store for a while and this is a great site because it’s only four miles from the first store, so it makes moving staff and products around easier,” Ramesh added.

Ramesh’s three tips for opening a second store

1. Do it with your eyes open: People can open a second site and take their eyes off the first one and find the net result isn’t that great.
2. Be responsive: It’s a whole lot of learning, but it’s really rewarding.
3. Make sure you have your resources in place: Make sure you have enough cash flow and people to help you. Get the components in place so you don’t short change yourself.

The Shingadia’s other store Londis Southwater won the award for Effective Ranging in the 2015 Independent Achievers Academy. Here’s why they won.