VEGANS of the Borders can rejoice as a new business has opened.

Serving food and drinks which are 100 per cent vegan, Zola’s Bakery in Galashiels is believed to be the first business of its kind in the region.

The bakery, which offers sitting in and takeaway dining options, opened on Wednesday, May 11, and has been extremely popular for vegans, vegetarians, those with dietary requirements and anyone looking to try something a bit different.

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Portia Legge, 24, who owns Zola’s Bakery, said: “[It’s been] super busy actually.

“We’ve been very surprised with the response.

“We weren’t just targetting people that are vegan or anything, it’s anyone that’s potentially interested in eating more plant based, or having dairy-free coffee.”

She added: “We’ve had lots of people come in saying they’re dairy intolerant, or gluten intolerant,

“So I think it’s really good that we’ve filled that niche in the market.

“We’ve had a very warm welcome.”

According to the Vegan Society, in 2019 there were 600,000 vegans in the UK, a figure which had quadrupled from that which was recorded in 2014 (150,000).

Portia and her partner lived in London before moving to the Borders.

She said finding the space on Bank Street was down to luck.

“Shops are quite cheap up here,” Portia explained, “so we thought we would be spending so much on renting a kitchen anyway, why not find a place with direct contact with the public.

“This place just came up after we closed on our house.

“I noticed the sign, it wasn’t even online and I just rang and luckily I was the first person through the door. It was really lucky.”

She added: “When we moved up here it was almost like we were starting from scratch we had none of our wholesale customer, we obviously had online but a lot of online was also on the fact that people could just pick it up from us in London.

“So, we did lose quite a lot of our customers.”

In the bakery, customers can expect to find freshly baked sweet treats like cakes, brownies, and the bakery’s bestsellers, cinnamon buns and jam and custard doughnuts – all ideal to enjoy with a dairy-free coffee or hot drink.

And Portia also offers savoury items, including a vegan sausage roll and filled ciabattas with fillings such as curried cauliflower and chickpea ‘tuna’ – fresh salads are also available.

As she meets more customers too, Portia is finding out what things people are looking for and how she can expand the food she offers to make sure she includes items suitable for as many people as possible.

“We’ve just moved up from London and we were shocked how there’s no options,” she said.

“There are cafés that maybe do a vegan brownie or something like a flapjack.

“But there’s no actual place for people – not only who are vegan but who have actual intolerances – to go and enjoy a meal.

“If my research is correct, we are the people in the Borders that only do vegan stuff.”

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Zola’s Bakery is open Monday, Wednesday to Sunday from 9am-4pm.

For more information, search for Zola’s Bakery on Facebook or Instagram.

Or visit their website at: zolasbakery.com