Natoora pomegranate

Natoora's Sicilian pomegranate

Fresh produce supplier Natoora has opened its second retail store in London, with a store designed to enhance the flavour of its produce.

The new shop, located at 245 Pavilion Road in Sloane Square, central London, re-envisions the way people buy and enjoy their fruit and vegetables, according to brand director Tim Ballard.

“We not only source exceptional seasonal produce, but we also put a lot of work into transporting and displaying it correctly – no other produce retailer has created an environment geared towards flavour,” he said.

Founded in 2005, the supplier brings home cooks the same high-end produce used by London’s top chefs. It supplies households as well as over 400 professional kitchens across the UK.

The produce on offer at the Sloane Square store this winter will include 'intensely perfumed citrus', Sicilian pomegranates, bergamots from Calabria in Italy, and a range of to-go options, such as breakfast pots, fruit salads and herbal infusions.

Conceived by Leeds-based firm Design Time, the new space, which spans 800 sq ft over two floors, creates the perfect conditions for the supplier’s fresh produce.

The fruit and veg will be chilled in five humidity-neutral cooling systems similar to those found in cheese shops. These help leafy greens stay crisp and keep vegetables fresh.Instead of stacking its fruit and vegetables, the shop will arrange delicate and particularly ripe stock flat and in a single layer to avoid bruising.

The upstairs will be converted at a later stage into an area for learning, with cooking demonstrations and talks by the chefs and growers Natoora works with.

Ballard added: “We wanted to create an in-store experience that encourages people to taste produce, ask questions, and truly understand how fruit and vegetables develop their flavour. Our new location in Sloane Square gives us the opportunity to share our knowledge in a central area of London.”

The supplier, whose produce is available at Ocado, Whole Foods Market and Selfridges, already had a shop in Chiswick, west London.