A THREE-wheeled Italian van laden with chilled prosecco is the brainchild of businesswoman Pippa Yeates.

She came up with the idea for the Bubble & Squeak prosecco ‘boutique’ after searching for a way to combine her passions with the desire to run a business.

Pippa, from Ensbury Park in Bournemouth, is a keen festival-goer and a lover of food and drink.

“I was working in retail management but I’ve done a lot of festival and event work as well,” she said.

“I’ve always wanted to run my own business so I started looking at up-and-coming things. My interests are festivals and events so I tied it together and came up with this.”

Setting up the business required navigating the red tape involved with licensing and insurance.

It also involved learning about prosecco and how it can be kept refrigerated – as well as the practicalities of running a Piaggio Ape van.

“I just kind of figured it all out. I was doing a lot of research and finding out which was the best way to do things,” said Pippa, 30.

The van had been used by a bakery in a previous life and Pippa had it renovated, complete with a cooling system to keep the drink at the right temperature.

“It’s quite interesting to drive because it’s three wheels and left hand drive,” she said.

The van, with a maximum speed of 40mph, can be driven to events such as festivals and private functions. “It’s nice because I don’t think people think I still drive it,” said Pippa.

Pippa had support from organisations including WSX Enterprise and Virgin StartUp. One of her first engagements was at a Virgin StartUp event at THIS Workspace in the Daily Echo building, with the van indoors.

She keeps the prosecco in kegs, so it can be served from a tap, and creates prosecco cocktails such as a Kir Royale, Aperol Spritz or Pornstar Martini. Customers can also "pimp your prosecco" with additions such as elderflower cordial or strawberry purees.

“Since I’ve set up, quite a lot of others have emerged, but I like to think my style is unique. Hopefully I have a slightly different offering to other people,” said Pippa.