A HEXHAM business has moved to bigger premises on the same street to cater for increased demand.

To support the growth of the business, Twenty First Century Herbs has relocated on the town’s Market Street – its third venue on the street since opening in Hexham just under 10 years ago.

The company is receiving between 3,000 and 4,000 orders online each day, which meant there was a need for a larger venue.

The new building has allowed the company, owned by herbalist Nik Imrye, to expand the stock it sells in store, while the upstairs of the premises provides a base for the company to produce its medicines and pills on a larger scale, with a separate room to sort online orders.

Nik said: “The online orders have just shot up and we’re selling most of our own products which were my grandparents’ formulas.

“Because of the increase in demand, we needed to expand and this is the perfect building to allow us to do that.”

Twenty First Century Herbs is a family business, and Nik’s son Charley has become the fourth generation herbalist following on from Nik’s grandfather and mother.

While Nik started the shop in Hexham as a one-man band, the company has grown to the point where it now employs 11 members of staff. It is currently on the lookout for two apprentices to add to the team.

When looking for bigger premises, the opportunity to move elsewhere in the region arose. However, Nik was keen to remain in the centre of Hexham.

He said: “We have had a lot of support from local people and it’s nice to say we are in Hexham and we are back on the map and we can ask our customers what they want.

“We wanted to make sure we stayed in the heart of Hexham.”

In recent times, the growth of online retail has meant Twenty First Century Herbs trades throughout all of the UK. Recent orders have also started to come from across Europe, as the brand name continues to spread.