VINE HOUSE FARM
Putting therapy back into retail! Out of tiny acorns mighty oaks do grow! Remembering back to the days when the Farm Shop at Vine House Farm was more a museum than a shop – right at the beginning when feeding the birds meant throwing a few crumbs out in the garden after tea and definitely not the sophisticated array of mixes now available to cater for birds of all kinds! Gradually the product lines grew – it was a great day when it was possible to buy the quirky cards illustrating countryside events from Alex Clarke, and when Nicholas Watts produced a calendar using photographs he had taken on the farm. Sacks of potatoes could then be bought and asparagus in season. There were bunches of daffodils, Sweet Williams and sunflowers in buckets by the till. Then the Farm Walks were introduced and it was possible to explore the landscapes and the birds that were encouraged onto the farm at close quarters. During the lockdown last year the shop became a go-to for the flour and other essentials that were in short supply in the supermarkets, and there was a dawning realisation that shopping locally from sustainable sources and reducing food miles could at the same time make shopping a pleasurable experience. What better than to shop in a rural setting, and buy goods that were fresh, safe in the knowledge that you knew where they came from! Now a spacious retail environment in the open countryside, with a café looking out onto a wildlife area, is both a step back in time and a step forward. Here’s to a more sustainable and pleasurable retail future! Judy Stevens
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