Noodle Box and The Farmer’s Wife Boutique are new arrivals both receiving plenty of trade, while Creswick Country Fresh is expanding.

Le Péché Gourmand French patisserie is one of the township’s most notable recent success stories, along with the take over last year of the former Novotel by RACV.

Creswick ward councillor Don Henderson said the town had seen a turnaround in fortune, with “a bit of a waiting list” for people wanting to open businesses.

“All the shops are getting filled. Now it’s difficult to get a shop,” he said.

“There seems to be an influx of people coming in from Melbourne or wherever.

“Often we have people come and visit and then they come and stay. They fall in love with the place. They come here and return and open a business.”

Cr Henderson said Creswick’s proximity to Ballarat, good bus service and stronghold of community groups were selling points, meaning both retail and residential properties were becoming as costly as Ballarat.

“Creswick’s very expensive too now. It’s the environment and the lifestyle,” he said.

Le Péché Gourmand owner Paul Williams said the secret to Creswick’s recent success was it offered niche products that people were willing to travel for.

“We find that people come out just to see us. It’s definitely a town that’s changed a fair bit, especially in the past year and a lot of new business have opened recently,” he said.

“Everything we do you can’t get anywhere else and I think people will travel to get that. I think that’s the biggest and main reason we’ve been successful.”

However, he said for good business to continue, the town needed to think ahead.

“I think Creswick needs to look at other things rather than just the food scene – give people a reason to come out,” he said.

“We have a few farms to visit, the Woollen Mills...Hepburn Shire Council is interested in building mountain biking and walking trails, but it’s a long way off.”