13/11/2025
A Blog Post about the Farm Shop and Cafe from the owner of The Middlewick, Glastonbury. Jill Barker
The early days of Middlewick we had an honesty table out at the bottom of the drive. Selling apples, walnuts and other produce from our gardens. Then the farm shop moved into the small office we had in the middle of the cottages (what is now Annex cottage second bedroom)
I needed more space so we brought in the Elliott building, plonked it at the top of the drive, and just like that, Middlewick had a farm shop.
Then came 2020.
The pandemic changed everything. Overnight, our little farm shop became a lifeline for the community of Glastonbury. Shelves that once held a few jars of jam and bunches of flowers were suddenly stocked with everything you could possibly need.
My best idea of that time? Buying up all the catering-sized bags of ingredients that restaurants could no longer use – flour, sugar, rice – and repackaging them into smaller bags for our customers.
While the big supermarkets struggled to fill their shelves, small businesses like ours were finding clever, local solutions. Local suppliers had plenty of stock, and together we made sure nothing went to waste.
Those were strange but wonderful days. For a moment, our little farm shop was competing with the giants. But what truly made it special was the community spirit.
People came not just to shop, but to connect. The farm shop became a safe and familiar space – somewhere to bump into friends, share a chat, swap recipes, or just feel a little less alone.
Shopping turned into something joyful again, something human. Those are the memories I’ll always treasure from an otherwise difficult chapter in hospitality.
Fast forward five years, and the world looks very different. Like so many in hospitality, we’re still finding our feet after the storm. Our accommodation and group travel business is thankfully back to where it was in 2019 (finally!). But the farm shop? It’s smaller now.
We simply can’t compete with supermarket prices or convenience anymore. These days, much of what I buy from local suppliers ends up on our kitchen specials board instead – turned into delicious meals that many of you have been enjoying in the cafe. Nothing goes to waste, and in a way, that feels like a full-circle moment.
Still, it’s hard not to feel sad watching small rural shops, pubs, B&Bs, and cafés – once the heartbeats of their communities – slowly disappear. It’s tough out there for small businesses, and there’s no denying that.
But here’s the thing: I’m still an optimist.
I love what I do. I always have. And I know I’m not alone – there are so many of us in hospitality and retail who keep going, not because it’s easy, but because it’s who we are.
We’ll keep adapting, keep finding new ways to serve our customers, and keep reminding our communities that small businesses matter.
They’re what make rural towns like Glastonbury unique and full of character.
