'There's not many left': Owner of 152-year-old Sheffield sweet shop keeping British tradition alive

The owner of one of the oldest traditional sweet shops in Yorkshire is keeping the British tradition alive and says there are not many stores like his left in the UK - but the popularity of his nostalgic confectionary has passed on through the generations.

Julian Hunt, 46, owns Granelli's in Sheffield, which was established on Broad Street in 1874 by Italian brothers Luigi and Charles Granelli and remains a family business to this day.
It began as an ice cream shop, but then expanded to the sweet shop which has sat at the edge of the city for 152 years.

For three decades, Julian Hunt has run the store after taking over from his uncle Peter Granelli and says that it has remained largely the same since it began, with the store keeping its original design and layout, and stocking the same sweets.

It's an Aladdin's Cave of all things sugary, with confectionery stocked from floor to ceiling, and a sign outside that reads 'old fashioned spice at an old fashioned price'.

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Mr Hunt pointed out some of his stock in Granelli's and told GB News: "We have over 201 sweets in the shop - a huge range of different selections, from fudge to bonbons to hard boiled sweets, to sherbert fountains, to rainbow drops and cider toffee.

"The list goes on - there's Yorkshire mix, wine gums, cola bottles, sour mix, chocolate mini eggs, dolly mixtures, if you want it, we've probably got it, or if not we can order it in, and we are always getting new sweets in for people to try as well as keeping all our old fashioned ones.

"People tell me that we're sort of an institution in Sheffield, and we've stuck to what worked - we're on Facebook now and we've got a card machine, but other than that, we've basically kept the same setup from day one.

"We've been 152 years - my great, great grandfather started it, Luigi Brunelli who came to Sheffield from Genoa in Italy in 1873. It started with the ice cream vans and trailers, and then sweets came along afterwards.

"We pride ourselves on keeping the original sweets all the way with the proper flavour that are made properlyAnd in the correct way, with the old-fashioned ingredients, rather than the more modern sweets with the cheaper ingredients that lack in flavour."

The historic establishment's present owner suggests his bestselling items demonstrate that Britain's fondness for sweets has not altered significantly over 15 decades.

From pear drops to sherbet dips, the treats here sourced locally with plenty to choose from, and the next generation are now experiencing the sweets their parents and grandparents loved.

"People come here from far and wide for the old fashioned sweets you can't get anywhere else, or order them online and we can get them delivered," said Mr Hunt.

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"Lots of the sweets we get in are made by local firms - Maxon's are a Sheffield company, Willett's are from Chesterfield and Bassett's of Liquorice Allsorts fame was founded in Sheffield in 1842.

"We get people of all ages coming in to buy sweets, but when the kids come in, they're buzzing because they've never seen so many sweets before as you just don't see traditional sweet shops like there used to be.

"The dads of the kids say when they come in 'I came in there when I was a child and my granddad brought me in here', so that's always a great story to hear.

"The children try all the traditional sweets their parents enjoyed, but they also love anything blue and fizzy. Whenever a new blue sweet comes out we get it, because they love it.

"There's not shops about like this, that's the point, there's just no shops in Sheffield or anywhere, really, in Yorkshire, or across Britain, hardly anywhere left like this. They've all closed down."

For Mr Hunt, the cost of living and before that Covid, have heavily impacted his business, but he says the uniqueness of his store makes it popular, and that nostalgia sells, with classic confectionery like Sherbet Fountains, Pear Drops and Bonbons continuing to reign supreme.

He said: "With the pandemic and all the changes in the area like the clean air zone and the bus lanes have all made things a lot harder, as we had to shut up shop, and the changes to the road layout make it harder for people to get to us, but we're still here, we're still carrying on, and won't let it stop us.

“Historically we've survived two world wars, and currently we've got by with the cost of living and the changes in the area - we’re pretty much the only building left on the street from the original days as the pub next door and the pub across the road closed and other buildings were knocked down.

“The shop is here every day, Monday to Sunday, it’s part of the community, and it's definitely one of a kind."

The UK confectionery market is valued at roughly £17.85 billion a year and continues to grow.

According to Appleton Sweets, retro confectionary is making a comeback, with sweets that remind us of childhood favourites are gaining traction once more, and parents introducing their children to the sweets they had growing up.

GB News asked people in Sheffield which candy they would choose at a traditional sweet store.

Jean said: I just like liquorice, and that's why I like Liquorice Allsorts."

Chris said: "If you can get them still, coconut mushrooms or something like that, or if not, jelly babies."

Marilyn said: "Anything that lasts a long time, like gob stoppers or pineapple chunks."

Iris said: "I like the chewing nuts, the nutty ones - they've got a nice chocolate around the outside and they're a lovely taste."

Dan added: "Those pink candy mice things - you know, pink and white mice. They're not quite chocolate, but they're like chocolate and they're really nice.

Margaret said: "I like the old fashioned humbugs, but I really like Werthers, I like those every day."

To find out more about Granelli's, where you can also order traditional sweets online, visit their Facebook page and search for 'Granellis Sweets' or click here.

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