Dr Luke Evans, Member of Parliament for Hinckley and Bosworth, visited Hamlett’s Harvest in Burbage to celebrate their first weeks in business and discuss the importance of buying fresh food and drink from local producers.
Tom and Lucy Hamlett opened Hamlett’s Harvest, at 75 Brookside Road, Burbage, in October to provide people from across the area with a store dedicated to providing fresh, locally sourced produce where possible.
Speaking after the visit, Dr Evans said “We have so much to offer in our area and Hamlett’s Harvest is quickly becoming the perfect showcase for many local growers and producers.”
The local MP has been a champion of farmers and local growers since he was elected and successfully led the ‘Buy British Button’ campaign which called on supermarkets with online stores to implement a ‘Buy British’ tab on their websites to make it easier for people to buy homegrown food and support the nation’s farmers. The UK’s major supermarkets, including Asda, Tesco, Sainsbury’s and the Co-op, launched a dedicated ‘Buy British’ section online following Dr Evans’s campaign.
Customers can visit Hamlett’s Harvest and find everything from store-baked bread and pastries to a selection of cheeses from Sparkenhoe Farm in Upton, milk from Middlefields Moo Juice which is on the road to Stoke Golding and even honey from Steve’s Bees, also based on Brookside Road in Burbage.
There were even Christmas trees available to buy at Hamlett’s Harvest from the Midland’s largest Christmas tree grower, New Farm Christmas Trees in Cadeby.
Depending on the time of year other items in store, such as strawberries, may be from further afield given the seasonality of Britain’s climate.
The local MP visited Hamlett’s Harvest on 7th December as part of Small Business Saturday, an annual nation-wide celebration of local businesses which aims to support a strong local economy and encourages shoppers to visit stores run by local people.
Tom and Lucy Hamlett, owners of Hamlett’s Harvest, said “Since opening our shop in October we have been thrilled with the amount of support from the local community. It was our aim to bring back an old fashioned greengrocers, providing the freshest produce along with excellent customer service and an inviting and warm place to visit.
“We are enjoying being a part of the community, getting to know lots of families and looking after them. We thank you all for your continued support and wish you a happy and healthy New Year.”
Dr Luke Evans, Member of Parliament for Hinckley and Bosworth, said “It was a real pleasure to meet Tom, Lucy and the team at Hamlett’s Harvest, to hear all about their first few weeks in business and what drove them to open a farm shop.
"Villages and towns across Hinckley and Bosworth are blessed to have lots of small independent florists, butchers, farm shops and cafés right at our fingertips, Small Business Saturday is the perfect chance to recognise the contributions that small businesses make to our communities and is a great reminder to shop local.
“Hamlett’s Harvest, with their emphasis on supporting local producers and growers, is exactly the type of business we want to see thriving in our community.”