Work has started to transform a shop which has sat empty for more than a decade into a florist and cafe.

The unit in King Street in Dover was last used in 2010 but Steve Horton, who has taken over the site, says this did not hinder his decision to invest.

The 54-year-old is hoping to convert it into a flower and coffee shop called Bunch and Lunch, which his sister and nephew will work in.

The unit was previously a shoe shop and a planning application for the site in 2010 stated it was occupied by a dentist's surgery.

Mr Horton, who has lived in Dover his whole life, said: “Location for any business is quite important and we thought it was a good place so we went for it.

“The Beacon and St James’ are nearby too so I think it’ll be a great area to be in.

“It needs a bit of work on it but it’s something we’re prepared to do.”

While a coffee shop and florist unit in one is rare, Mr Horton says he did it in the hope that the pair would support each other.

“The cost of flowers is quite expensive on the wholesale market so we didn’t feel the florist itself would be viable as a business to run so we needed something to support it and as it’s quite a decent sized property, we can fit in two counters and have more success by doing both,” he said.

“We knew there would be a cost when we looked at the unit to get it back to a viable business.

“We have the shop front approval and there are no huge concerns – we saw it as a longer-term investment with a potential of not getting the money we’re investing back.”

Working inside the shop will be Mr Horton’s sister, Wendy Hood who is a florist, and his nephew, Jayson Hood, 23, who will be running the coffee shop.

Mr Horton, who has several other businesses which are based around logistics in Dover, says it is because of the success of these that he has been able to take on this new one.

“I did it to help out my family really,” he added.

“There’s nothing else down that end of the town – there’s plenty of cafes and stuff but nothing that’s a florist and coffee shop so I’d like to think people will be happy with it.

“We might start selling ice creams and stuff too since you have people walking toward the seafront.”

He added his four children, who are aged 11 to 15, could work in the shop in the future but they will definitely be looking to employ one more, if not two, members of staff.

While it is not known when Bunch and Lunch could open, Mr Horton is keen to get the ball rolling but says he has had trouble with getting electricity into the unit.

“It’s half refurbished and until we have the electric we can’t really do a great deal more,” he explained.

“Everyone is just itching to get going.

“We’re treading mud at the moment but I’m sure in the next couple of weeks we will make our way forward and get some more positive news.”

A dentist surgery occupied the building in the late 1990s and in 2001 the practice applied to extend into the upper floors from its existing surgery on the ground floor.

A planning application came forward in 2003 to demolish the building and replace it with five town houses.

Those plans were approved but never materialised and were resubmitted in 2010 - but again did not come to fruition after the scheme was this time rejected.

Planning documents for an application in 1996 to convert the building into a restaurant said it was empty at that time.

According to the Folkestone and District Local History Society, a branch of Walter’s Shoes opened there in 1948 but closed in the 1990s.

The latest scheme saw a recruitment agency gain permission to open up in the unit in 2017, although this never happened either and the site has remained vacant.