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| Kay Croot of Croots farm shop in Derbyshire |
A former
director with big retail brands Boots and Asda is bringing her expertise to the
family business after joining her husband full-time at Croots Farm Shop in
Derbyshire.
Kay Croot
is now working alongside husband Steve at the farm shop near Duffield in a move
which coincides with a makeover at the award-winning shop.
The outlet
opened in 2008 at Farnah House Farm, Wirksworth Road – the farm where Kay grew
up and where her parents Jim and Sue Yates still live.
Now Kay has
joined Steve full-time at the helm as they launch a new era for Croots Farm
Shop with updated displays and fixtures, new lighting and a revamped product
range to include a wider selection of gifts alongside the food and drink
products that the store is well known for.
“I’ve had
more than 25 years of experience in the retail sector, working with some really
famous brands like Boots, Asda and Aldi, but I’m really excited to be working with
Steve full-time in the family business now,” said Kay.
“Croots
Farm Shop launched in 2008 and since that time we’ve become a popular store,
recognised for the high quality meat, cheeses and other products we sell. In
response to demand, we’ve previously expanded the store and the coffee shop,
which is now known as Shires Eatery, and we have long-term plans in the
pipeline which will hopefully develop the shop further.
“In the
meantime, we’ve just given the shop a really stylish makeover which we hope our
existing customers, and those new customers who haven’t yet found us, will welcome
and enjoy.”
As part of
the revamp, the 400 metre driveway from Wirksworth Road to the farm has been resurfaced
– giving customers a smoother journey passed the fields of Shire horses and
sheep as they drive to Croots Farm Shop.
Kay, who
has been a buyer for Aldi, a central merchandising director as Asda, and more
recently has held several senior roles at Boots including commercial director
for various departments, was brought up at Farnah House Farm, where her parents
farm and also breed Shire horses.
“We’ve got
lots of plans to develop Croots Farm Shop by holding more events and organising
different themed restaurant nights, building on the great reputation that we’ve
built up over the past few years,” she explained. “Steve continues to be in
charge of the day-to-day running of Croots and my role is more of a strategic
overview, with the focus on events and longer term development. We make a good
team and it’s great to be working together full-time.”
Croots has
won scores of awards for its meat and meat products, its pies and for numerous
other items that it produces in-house, including Great Taste Awards, which are
the Oscars of the fine food industry. Last year, Croots Bakewell Tart was
crowned the best sweet bake in a national award run by Great British Food magazine.
In previous
years it has been named in The
Independent’s top 50 best food shops and was runner-up in the Best UK Independent Food Retailer
2010 category of the Observer Food
Monthly Awards.
Employing 30
staff, the farm shop stocks products from around 40 different producers from
within a 50-mile radius of the shop, and regularly holds tasting sessions to
introduce customers to the producers and their food and drink.
Croots is
a keen supporter of Derbyshire Children’s Holiday Centre, which provides
disadvantaged Derbyshire children with holidays in Skegness and is this year
celebrating its 125 birthday. With the help of customers and staff, the farm
shop has raised thousands of pounds for charity since it first opened.
Croots Farm Shop is open Monday to
Saturday from 9am to 5pm (Shires Eatery until 4.30pm) and from 10am to 4pm on
Sundays. Croots runs Fresh Fish Thursdays between 9am and 1pm on Thursdays.
For
more information, visit www.croots.co.uk
Find Croots on Twitter
@crootsfarm_shop or on Facebook www.facebook.com/Croots-Farm-shop
Press release issued by Nottingham based pr company Perfect 10 PR www.perfect10pr.co.uk
