No, we've not gone all Beverley Hills Cop on you, the heat really is on! It's two weeks until opening weekend and we've never been so hectic in our lives. It was only a few weeks ago that we got the keys to the shop and since then we've beenbusy getting the shop fitted out. The unit was quite literally handed over as a big empty box, no walls, no wiring, no plumbing. We didn't even have a light, so we toasted getting the keys on a cold February night with a glass of Roederer and a temperamental torch.

Since then, we've made a lot of improvements to the building, including some really lovely signs made by Sylvia and Garry at Willow Signs and the building and shopfitting being expertly completed by joiners from Recclesia Ltd. Behind the scenes, we've been busy getting ourselves online, from building our own website from scratch (oh, what fun we had...) to getting our twitter and facebook pages up and running: https://twitter.com/whitmorewhite

But it's not all about the building. Joe and I had so much fun visiting suppliers both abroad and in the UK that we almost forgot that this was supposed to be work. Whilst we shortlisted our suppliers and placed orders with our serious heads on, the sampling, tasting and trying of delicious food and wine has been an absolute hoot! We have met some amazing people, from wine makers and importers to artisan bakers, growers and makers, and we have found a lot of seriously good stuff for the shop.

We both hope that our enthusiasm, time and effort has translated into a shop which is full of things that you will want to try, to savour and that will keep you all coming back for more - but we'll never stop looking for new things, better things or different things. We can't wait to get the place open and we have been inundated with messages of luck, best wishes and "about times" from lots of Heswall folk.

Opening day is Saturday 5th April 2014 - we both look forward to seeing you in the shop!

Jamie & Joe