Northampton butcher proud to double the size of premises to create ‘one stop farmshop’
A Northampton butcher is proud to have doubled the size of his premises to create a “one stop farmshop” for the community to enjoy.
Anthony Barton founded The Butchers Block, located at Billing Garden Village, back in 2013 and recently expanded his business to house a butchers, deli and farmshop under one roof.
Anthony has been involved in the butchers industry since the age of 12 and started out as a Saturday boy in the fish market.
He pivoted to work in the education and training sector and eventually accepted voluntary redundancy, which encouraged him to take the leap to set up The Butchers Block.
The business began by solely delivering to restaurants, businesses and people’s homes until it moved to Billing Garden Village nine years ago.
The Butchers Block continued to deliver to those it previously had, as well as opening a shop for the public to visit and collect their orders.
Anthony knew now was the right time to expand and double the premises in size when a nearby unit became available at Billing Garden Village.
Not only do they stock all of the products they previously did as a butchers, but it now operates as a deli and farmshop too – with cheeses, pates, fresh bread, eggs, condiments, fruit and vegetables all available, among a wider variety.
“It’s a one stop shop,” Anthony told the Chronicle & Echo. “This is something I wanted to do a couple of years ago, and the business has grown and grown. It took five to six weeks of blood, sweat and tears.”
The Butchers Block reopened on July 4 with a “stonker of a weekend” in which Anthony was inundated with “absolutely fantastic” feedback.
There are many regulars who have seen the evolution of the business over the past decade, and hearing how proud they are of him made Anthony emotional.
He believes the biggest selling point is that everything customers could want from a farmshop is available under one roof, with free parking and other nearby businesses to visit.
“We want to make people aware of what we’re about,” said Anthony. “We’re supporting local companies and the area, and we hope people will do the same for us.”