AN APP to help people to shop locally from the comfort of their own homes is set to launch this weekend.

On Saturday, October 17, ShopAppy.com launches in Hawes, Stokesley, Malton and York.

Having ShopAppy.com in your town means you can browse, book, buy, and get a convenient home delivery from independent shops and businesses in your area with one simple checkout.

In North Yorkshire, more than 100 business have gained free use of the site for 12 months, thanks to the support of the York and North Yorkshire Growth Hub.

ShopAppy.com can also help services, trades, B2B businesses, chefs, pop-ups, entertainers, and market stalls with home delivery and can even host virtual events.

Catherine Eastham is the director of The Alchemist’s Cottage in Hawes, which sells a range of artisan coffee, tea, and health food products. She said: “When we opened up again after the initial lockdown things were really quiet. Things did pick up over the summer holidays but now it has gone quiet again. What I think ShopAppy can help me with is reaching those local customers who may not want to venture out."

"They can browse our products and I can still sell to them.”

Denise Allen who runs The Nursery in Stokesley – a babywear, toys and gift shop said: “I feel very lucky to have my shop based in Stokesley where the people who live here absolutely believe in supporting small local businesses. I struggled at first after lockdown as I have to work from behind a counter and glass screen so browsing instore was difficult. Shopappy.com came into my life at exactly the right time as it allows me to use its platform as my shop floor display. Now when people visit they have already browsed online and purchased something and are just calling in to collect it.”

Yorkshire-based founder of ShopAppy.com, Dr Jackie Mulligan, who has recently been invited to be a UK High Street Task Force Expert https://www.highstreetstaskforce.org.uk/ said: “We are delighted to be working in these great North Yorkshire towns and partnering with the York and North Yorkshire Growth Hub on the launch of ShopAppy.com here. It could not be a more critical time for businesses to work together and make it easier for locals to spend closer to home. And with Christmas around the corner, buying from your local businesses via ShopAppy.com is a great way to offer support and good cheer to your local town when your community most needs it.”

Manager of York and North Yorkshire Growth Hub, Andrew Raby says: “We’re currently offering free subscriptions to ShopAppy.com for local businesses as we see it as a great platform. By having goods and services available online, businesses are giving themselves added resilience for the future. There’s plenty of technical support too, such as weekly online drop-in sessions, so setting up couldn’t be easier.”

See more information on York and North Yorkshire Growth Hub and its support for ShopAppy here: https://www.ynygrowthhub.com/how-we-can-help/12-months-ShopAppy-membership/

See more information and sign up for ShopAppy.com here: https://ShopAppy.com/