A new independent sweet shop and ice cream has opened for children

Sweet Child of Mine, located at 16 Church Road, provides a nostalgic trip for sweet lovers with a selection of sundaes, classic desserts, and a variety of ice cream flavours.

Sue Allison, 51, a Crystal Palace resident, came up with the idea for the sweet shop.

She recognised a void in the area’s sweet options, which inspired her to build a shop that serves as both a pick-and-mix and an old-school ice cream parlour.

The shop supplies more than 50 different pick and mix sweets, ranging from classics like sherbet lemons to contemporary ones like rainbow belts.

They also sell 15 flavours of family-owned English Marshfield Ice Cream and other delectable delights like fudge, marshmallows, and chocolates, with new items added every week.

Customers can select small, medium, or big bags of varied sweets, just as they would in a traditional sweet shop.

The company also sells party bags and personalised sweet jars, which are excellent for gifts.

Sweet Child of Mine also plans to expand its services into the winter by offering indoor seating and “build your own sundae” parties for ice cream all year.

Sue Allison spent almost 25 years in the television production profession, working on some of Britain’s most successful quiz and game programmes before embarking on this enterprise.

Sue said, “I’ve had a fantastic career, but the last several years have been quite difficult for the TV industry in general.

“It felt like the time was right to go and do something completely different.”

She continued: “I wanted to create an attractive and enchanting place that would put smiles on people’s faces – the grown-ups as well as the little children who get transfixed by the rows of jars.”

Hana Sunny, a signwriter and designer, collaborated with Sue to create the shop’s branding, which was inspired by 1950s American ice cream parlour design.

When asked about future ambitions to open a chain, Sue replied, “I’d like to expand the sweets business online, but for now, I’ll be happy to become an established favourite for all ages on the Crystal Palace Triangle.”

Sweet Child of Mine will be open every Wednesday through Sunday from 12pm to 6pm, including bank holidays.