A new shop which provides products and advice for allergy sufferers has opened its doors in Hull city centre with the owner determined to raise awareness of dietary issues in memory of his late wife.

Charlie and Pat McGahey began working on the project five years ago when Charlie was made redundant from his IT job. But their plans for a specialist food shop and café were shattered when Pat, who had been diagnosed with coeliac disease in 2002, was also found to have ovarian cancer.

Pat died in October 2012 but Charlie was determined to go ahead, open the shop in Pat’s memory and help other people with specific dietary requirements.

Charlie said: “After Pat was diagnosed we started researching coeliac disease. She had worked for more than 20 years monitoring patient meals at Hull Royal Infirmary and Castle Hill Hospital so she was familiar with dealing with dieticians and had some knowledge of the issues.

“When I was made redundant we decided to set up a shop and café. We managed to get the funding together and I completed the necessary training but we had to stop everything after Pat’s cancer diagnosis – the coeliac disease had masked the symptoms and the cancer was at an advanced stage.”

Remarkably, even after the enforced delay Charlie found the preferred premises in Prospect Street, Hull were still available. With the help of business advisers and the Acorn Fund he pressed ahead with his plans and recently opened P&C Freefrom.

He said: “Other business had looked at the property and had even done a lot of work on the premises but they didn’t proceed so the unit was still available and I took it on.

“I sell the sort of things that people can’t find in the main supermarkets, and I also have a lot of recipes to hand so I can advise people on different ways to use the products.

“We specialise in gluten-free and wheat-free products and I am finding more and more suppliers. If people ask for certain specialist products I am prepared to search for them and get them at the right price. “

Pictured: Charles McGahey at P&C Freefrom in Prospect Street,  Hull. (Picture by by Kate Woolhouse / Hull Daily Mail )