Hi, I'm Steve, and I'm lucky to be the manager at The Lido Community Shop and Innellan Post Office. It is a fantastic place to work, in a beautiful location, with amazing colleagues. Meeting the wonderful people in our community daily, and providing them with the services they deserve, is always a pleasure. Did you know we are the only Community Owned Shop in the Cowal area?

A Bit of History
The shop and post office are a central and important part of the community. This was demonstrated when the whole community came together to form South Cowal Community Enterprises Ltd. to purchase the shop and save this vital asset. There used to be 14 shops in Innellan, so we are the last shop still open in the village! Our community buyout was funded by Highlands and Islands Enterprise and the Community Land Fund. We also offered shares to the community and over 340 people are now shareholders and members.

The takeover happened just before Covid hit, this has meant a lot of hard work and dedication to keep us open and keep our community supplied with essentials. We could not develop a lot of the services we wanted to at that time, and now we are all dealing with the recession that has hit everyone’s pockets. We are still here, despite the hurdles, and continue to support our community, as they support us and we look forward to developing our services more fully.

Our Aims

We try to use as many local suppliers as possible, to showcase what amazing products are here on our doorstep. We will highlight some of our produce and services below, from delicious pies and hearty soup to quality ice cream when the temperature rises a bit! Then, whether it's a latte, a newspaper, a local jam or honey, a stamp, personal banking or just treating yourself to a bar of chocolate, we have all that and much, much more.

As we move forward, we will be working hard to bring our community better services, stock even more local produce, reduce our carbon footprint (we have already invested in energy saving fridge freezers) and try to keep a range of affordable items.

Watch this space as we restructure to meet the challenges of a rural convenience store.

Please shop local, it is your shop, and we need your footfall!

A warm welcome is always guaranteed, any help you need, a chat, and taking the time to make you feel as important as you are, is embedded in the DNA of our business.

We also want your feedback and suggestions as we move forward! Please talk to staff or use the feedback cards we have instore.

Introducing the rest of Lido Team

Will is our Assistant Manager and runs a tight ship with the Post Office - appropriate for someone who lives on a boat! He works part time at the Lido and runs two businesses: teaching music and making engines sound sweet.

Finn, our newest recruit to the shop owns a local landscaping business but is putting his skills learned from running a pub to good use by working part time at the Lido.

Gina is our longest serving member of staff and came with the shop when the community bought it over. Such a beautiful baker!

Opening hours

Steve and the staff at the Lido Community Shop and Post Office are ready to serve 7 days a week.

We are a licensed grocers and our opening hours are.
Monday to Friday 7.30am – 6pm
Saturdays 7.30am – 6pm
Sundays 9am – 2pm (subject to longer hours in summer months)

Comments from customers:

A vital service within our community and so well stocked – Mrs C