Pop up hoping to pop back to town
Votes can help the return of ‘naanwiches’
A HUSBAND and wife who launched their own healthy Indian food business are pleading with the public to vote for them to win enough funding to return to Uxbridge.
Jag and Shushma Kumar opened Naked Naan as an independent pop-up shop in High Street for 10 weeks, but closed it a month ago.
Now they have entered a Pitch to Rich competition, with up to £150,000 up for grabs if they receive enough votes from satisfied customers.
They hope to use the prize money to reopen their business in Uxbridge permanently, with extra staff and an enlarged menu to attract evening trade, keeping the venture viable.
Mrs Kumar, 51, said: “This is something I’ve always felt deep down that I wanted to do, so I’m desperate for people to vote.
“We’re so grateful to all of our customers and we really want to see them again, so please vote for us to stay in Uxbridge.”
The couple, who live in Buckinghamshire, have owned Premier Nurseries, which has branches in St John’s Road, Uxbridge, and Iver, Buckinghamshire, for two decades, but say the business now “runs itself ”.
They first put their ‘naanwiches’ – naan bread sandwiches – to the test at the intu Taste Food Festival,
Husband and wife Shushma and Jag Kumar preparing to open Naked Naan in January. They are now hoping to return after closing last month where they ran a stall for two days in August last year.
After proving a hit with customers – selling out on both days – the High Street shopping centre invited them to use one of its units temporarily from January.
Mrs Kumar said: “We were blown away by the support we got, so that reinforced the fact that we do want to go forward with this, but now it’s just about the funding.”
To vote, visit www. virginmediabusiness.co.uk/ pitch-to-rich/start-up/nakednaan-/