History of the Westgate Gallery

The Westgate Gallery is a family business owned by the husband and wife team of Roy and Brenda Symon.  We took the business over as a going concern in 2003, at which time it was already an established gift shop and gallery.  The premises have a long commercial history, having at one time been a joinery and undertakers business before being converted to retail use.  No ghosts from those days have been seen recently, but some visitors (without knowing about the previous history) have reported some eerie sensations.  However, we are sure that any ghosts are friendly ones!

We saw the potential to expand and modernise the facilities and services the business had to offer, beginning with installing a new kitchen to allow the gallery café to increase its capacity.  The refurbished, licensed café was re-named the Orangery Café and it has since been further renovated and upgraded to enhance its classic "conservatory" ambience.

Further developments have continued throughout, to create an extended exhibition gallery and adjoining gallery corridor to display further artwork.  New shop fittings, together with new high quality product ranges have also enhanced the gift shop side of the business.  Taken together, all these changes have dramatically improved the service offered to customers and have taken the Westgate experience to a new level. 

The Westgate Gallery Philosophy

We aim to please our customers by creating a relaxed ambience for our customers to browse round our shop and gallery and enjoy what our café has to offer.  We hope to create an enjoyable experience that customers will appreciate and want to return to.

On the other hand, we know that returning customers don't just want to see the "same old same old", so whilst we strive for consistency in standards we are always looking for change and improvement in what we offer.  That is why, to complement our well-established and popular product lines, we are always looking for new and exciting ranges to make ensure a visit to us remains interesting.