Two Stockport teenagers queued for 15 hours outside the Trafford Centre to be first in line for a SpudBros jacket potato, securing a free spud and a surprise widescreen TV. Sami Cassim and Kade Hamilton, both 13, from North Reddish, arrived at the shopping mall on Sunday night with camping chairs and three blankets, after their mums dropped them off. The SpudBros tram had returned to the Trafford Centre for the final week of the school summer holidays, following a debut pop-up in July that drew huge queues.
Overnight stakeout pays off
The brothers behind the brand, Preston's Jacob and Harley Nelson, had promised something special for the first in the queue when the tram reopened on Monday. That promise of a free jacket potato and a mystery prize was enough to encourage the two friends to stake their place overnight. Sami, officially first in line on Monday morning, met Harley Nelson, who served up his free spud loaded with cheese, beans and their special tram sauce.
Harley then surprised Sami by saying "look behind you" as a huge widescreen TV was brought out as his prize for waiting 15 hours. When asked what time they had arrived, Sami replied: "We got here at 9pm so it's been 15 hours, we've beaten the record by two hours." After tucking into his potato, Sami said it had been "so worth it" to take on the all-night stakeout. He told the Manchester Evening News: "It was a little bit cold so we wish we had brought an extra blanket, but it was worth it in the end." Asked what they'd be doing for the rest of the day, the two teenagers laughed: "Getting some sleep!"
Pop-up details and brand growth
The SpudBros tram will remain outside The Great Hall at the Trafford Centre until Saturday August 29, opening daily from 12noon to 8pm. Large spuds are priced at £6 plain, with toppings for between £1 and £2.50 extra, including beans, cheese, garlic chicken, and their famous spicy tram sauce and crispy onions. The pop-up sits next to the summer fair, which is also open for the rest of the week. Visitors are reminded that queues will be stopped before 8pm each night to avoid disappointment.
SpudBros' journey began in 1955 when a hot potato cart first opened on Preston's Flag Market. Decades later, Jacob and Harley Nelson transformed the family tradition into one of the UK's most recognisable food brands. With more than 5 million TikTok followers, 223 million likes, 1.49 million YouTube subscribers and 1.2 million Instagram followers, SpudBros has built one of the largest digital food communities in the country. The brand has announced rapid expansion plans with 30 SpudBros Express stores at EG petrol stations across the UK being rolled out across 2026.
