Castle Douglas Toffee Shop Finds A New Home

Castle Douglas Development Forum (CDDF) has agreed a lease for the Heart of Galloway Visitor Centre to The Toffee Shop on King Street.

CDDF has agreed a lease with Jayne and Keith Davidson, who took over The Toffee Shop in 2009, for the Heart of Galloway Visitor Centre after the contract for their premises on King Street came to an end this year. The Toffee Shop, which sells sweets, chocolate, and ice-cream, will coexist in the Heart of Galloway with the Tourist information desk that will continue to be run by CDDF and their team of volunteers.

Jane Davidson says: “We are delighted to be able to continue operating The Toffee Shop in Castle Douglas. After having looked at several premises on King Street that would have been unsuitable for our freezers, a chance conversation led to CDDF offering Heart of Galloway as the premises for the Toffee Shop. Though this will lead to a downsize of the Toffee Shop the location on Market Hill and its proximity to the park means we are hopeful this new situation will work well, and we are excited for the move.”

Regarding sharing the space with the Tourist Information desk, Jane said: “The Tourist

Information Centre will still have a huge input in Heart of Galloway. All our staff are local and will be able to offer advice to tourists and help to the volunteers when needed and support the work being done by the Forum. We are sure this move will be both a positive for The Toffee Shop and an asset to CDDF”.

Castle Douglas Development Forum (CDDF) finalised the purchase of the old Tourist Information Centre at Market Hill Car Park in Castle Douglas in March 2021, after a successful period of leasing the building and running the newly named Heart of Galloway Visitor Centre.

CDDF took over the running of the Centre after Visit Scotland, the countries national tourism agency, announced its closure after a national restructuring. Alarmed at the prospect of the town losing this vital resource and concerned about the possible effect this might have on local tourism in the area, CDDF contacted Visit Scotland and started a trial lease of the building in May 2018.