A seven-figure sum has been invested into expanding north-east third generation family business Marshall’s Farm Shop.
Growing by around 1,115 square metres (sqm), a new state-of-the-art and custom-built retail area and kitchen have been added to the existing venue.
The farm shop, which is based at the side of the A96 between Blackburn and Kintore, originally opened to the public in October 2010.
The business has continued to diversify and grow over the years with the most recently completed project taking around two years, a period prolonged by coronavirus.
The works finished on Monday November 15 and the venue remained open while they were underway, excluding when restrictions forced all hospitality venues to close their doors to the public.
Marshall’s Farm Shop is run by Kenneth (Kenny) and Moira Marshall and their three daughters Christine, Julie and Shona.
Family enterprise
Kenny and Moira oversee the full enterprise, paying particular attention to maintaining the high standards and top-quality customer service within the farm shop, as well as the financial side of the business.
Christine, Julie and Shona contribute towards the farm admin, social media coverage and anything technology-related.
They collectively opened the purpose-built farm shop and cafe more than a decade ago with the aim of promoting their own produce while selling directly to the general public.
Their produce includes a variety of vegetables, free-range eggs and homemade pies and cakes, as well as their own butchery counter within the new expansion which offers the family’s Aberdeen Angus home-reared meat.
Another new addition to the shop is the ‘Still House’ area which stocks a wide array of Scottish whiskies from up to 50 distilleries.
“Before the expansion was complete, we employed 15 staff between shop assistants, bakers, cooks, waitresses and kitchen porters,” Kenny said.
“Now we have around 20 staff members, but we have vacancies at the moment and hope to extend this to 25.”
Increased capacity
Marshall’s Farm Shop also progressed last year when it invested £45K into launching its Fireside Bothy, which is 81 sqm and boasts a capacity of 40, in September.
This allowed the team to continue trading while meeting the government’s outside eating restrictions.
A further seven-figure sum has been invested in the latest expansion project.
Moira added: “This wouldn’t have been possible without the re-investment of profits over the years.
“£300,000 alone was spent on architects, planning consents, road preparation and deceleration lanes as well as other ancillary costs.
“There have been many hurdles crossed to get to this point but using our own building squad and self-employed tradesmen has helped to control costs whilst supporting the local economy.”
The original tea room sat 40 customers while the new restaurant seats 120. This includes the Fireside Bothy space.
The new shop has increased by 297 sqm, going from 171 to 468.
Continued expansion
“Ideas in the pipeline for the next five years include a large children’s soft play as well as a farm animal petting area for children to see various animals up close,” Kenny said.
“There are lots of possible rural walks that we will create, and already we have some deer in an adjacent field to the farm shop.
“A further opportunity specific to the farm shop extension is the ability to host visits as part of bus tours, with one of the main attractions going to be our Still House feature.”
Within the Marshalls’ current expansion, they are also aiming to open a drive-thru in early 2022 offering locally sourced ice cream from Buckie, high-quality coffee from Caber Coffee and their home-reared meats.
Moira added: “We have already got the plans but will wait until the festive rush is passed and we settle into the new shop and restaurant environment.
“This is a huge gap in the market.
“Nearby we do have an organic ice cream parlour, a drive-thru Starbucks and a McDonald’s, but none of them offer the full unique experience under one roof quite like us.”
Marshall’s Farm Shop launched a drive-thru service in January this year in a bid to combat coronavirus restrictions placed on hospitality during the lockdown.
The service was seized in April after venues were given the green light to open for indoor dining.
Marshall’s Farm Shop is open from 9am to 5.30pm Monday to Friday and 9am to 5pm on Saturdays and Sundays.
The tea room closes at 4pm daily, with breakfast being served until 11.30am and hot food being served until 3pm.