The small, independent butchery is made
up of three shops in Kingsbridge, Ivybridge and Plymstock and owned
by Steven Hubbard who also runs the family farm in East Allington,
near Totnes.
Steven says that ever since his great, great grandfather began
selling local meat from a wheelbarrow, his family have been either
butchers or farmers, "Our original shop in Kingsbridge has been
serving local customers since 1835. In those days cows used to be
bought live in the cattle market at the bottom of the town and
herded up to the shop where they were butchered and served."
He adds: "Most of our meat is reared in Devon and, in fact, we
produce our own lamb and beef on the family farm. We use local food
producers throughout the county and our pork comes from Landrake,
just a few miles away over the Tamar in Cornwall - food miles are
an important consideration."
It's the pasties that Lidstones is widely known for - all their
own meat goes in the pasties and the award-winning formula even
attracts regular coach parties from as far away as Bristol to try
them out! The butchers' shops also sell hot pies, free-range eggs,
deli meats, sausages and a selection of locally grown
vegetables.
Steven admits, however, they don't just have a close relationship
with their food producers; this closeness extends to their insurer
Cornish Mutual and its local Inspector Graham Nicholls, "We have
been Members of Cornish Mutual for over five years and Graham's
looked after us from the start. Talking to other farmers, Cornish
Mutual came highly recommended and we've not been
disappointed."
Cornish Mutual provides insurance for all three butchers' shops
and the stock it holds, the family farm business, buildings,
agricultural machinery and its fleet of
vehicles.
Steven says it's the continuity that he likes, "I've been dealing
with the same person for over five years and it's the personal,
face-to-face contact that I have with Graham that's most important
to me. Long-term relationships in business are essential and we
needed to find an insurance firm at the start that we could grow
with."
"The service is excellent; Graham's very obliging and easily
accessible. He'll often come in if we need him and you can always
get hold of him. I've got his phone number on my mobile phone -
insurance on speed dial!" he smiles.
"Being a farmer, I'm usually out and about and quite often I don't
have the time to sit down and do all the paperwork - with Cornish
Mutual, I know I can rely on Graham to sort all that out and keep
things simple. I let Graham do all the hard work," Steven
laughs.
Lidstones currently employs around 20 members of staff and carries
out its own in-house butchery training.
Steven says they are looking to grow the business over the next
few years, "The main thing for us is maintaining and exceeding the
high standards that we're known for. You can't grow until you've
got that absolutely right - we've got a strong following and we
want to build on our reputation and keep doing what we're doing
well."
