The Farmers Mart Oct/Nov 2015 - Issue 42 | Page 34

Mainsgill Farm

increasing this to four nights a
week. They were often packing
into the early hours as they had
the farm to work during the day.
So with plans under their
arms, they headed for the Nat
West who were immediately
impressed and gave them a
loan for their first building, a
stone built farm shop in a 60
x 30 Foot building. Andrew
had also been applying for
improved access from the
highways dept who continually
knocked them back, but not to
be deterred Andrew kept on
it and finding out by chance
that the planning officer had
changed he reapplied and
hey presto in 1999 permission
granted!
So in 2001 the new shop was
under way but - just as it was up
to the sills – disaster struck with
Foot and Mouth. They closed
the gates, installed a foot bath
and sold everything over the
gate as well as continuing
with the farmers markets that
remained open during that
terrible time.
Late in 2001 the new shop
opened selling meat. They also
put in five tables for breakfast

and lunch and very quickly it
became a popular Tea Room.
During the next five years,
Andrew and Maria worked
tirelessly both on the Farm
and in the Shop continually
building on their reputation for
quality and service, all the while
keeping their eye on the future
and further growth.
In 2006 their hard work plus
Andrew and Marias infectious
enthusiasm and determination
to succeed paid off again with
the erection of the next 60 x
30 Ft extension to the existing
building. This meant the Tea
Room moved up to restaurant
status catering for 60 people
rather than 16. They were
now able to build designated
kitchens and a cold store.
By 2007 things were really
moving and a new 90 x 30
building went up which housed
a state of the art butchery,
four cold stores and a 30x 30
gift shop. Three years later,
another 90 x 30 building
was added increasing the
restaurant capacity to 150.
In 2013, they installed new
single wide access from the
A66. Once again, Andrew

34 Oct/Nov 2015 www.farmers-mart.co.uk

had to lock horns with the
Highways Agency who initially
estimated the access cost
at £70,000; after successive
audits, however, the final price
was a staggering £315,000 which they had to pay for. For
that kind of money you would
expect a lengthy project but in
fact it took only a – seriously
expensive - month.
You would think that by
that time, Andrew and Maria
would be consolidating all that
they have achieved and built.
But not a bit of it! Only this
year they have built a superb
two storey 11,000 square foot
building to house even more
room for produce and meat
products, but also a large gift
shop area and offices. The
whole building is now more
than 20,000 square feet.

IMPOSING – AND
ATTRACTIVE
What is truly amazing is that
during every refurbishment
and extension, Mainsgill has
never closed; and all the
buildings have been beautifully
constructed usin