3 minute read
Women in Business
Customer focused Lizzie sets sights on success on three fronts
The coronavirus pandemic and ensuing lockdown have resulted in many challenges for Bromsgrove businesses, not least its hard-working and innovative independents.
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Completely Bromsgrove caught up with one of the district’s best known – and cheeriest – business owners, Elizabeth Monk.
Lizzie, as she is affectionately known, recounted the story of how the pottery studio, Lizzie’s Farm Shop and tearoom have evolved at Chadwich Manor Farm over the past 15 years.
Having always lived on the farm, the eldest child of John and Valerie, Lizzie loved being a farmer’s daughter and admits her dad is her “hero”. Her artistic and practical flair led her to study ceramic design at university in the Potteries and after graduating, she worked for the Department of Education and Employment in Stoke-on-Trent where she was responsible for writing NVQ standards.
After approximately three years with the DEE, Lizzie, who has a brother named Jonathan, began an apprenticeship at Whichford Pottery in the Cotswolds and in 2005 she moved back to the farm.
At that time, her father John was a dairy farmer. Due to the drop in milk prices, he made the heart-wrenching decision to sell off the dairy herd and moved into beef and sheep farming.
Although Lizzie is very hands on where farm matters are concerned, she saw an opportunity to open a pottery studio and started running courses and offering children’s parties. The studio is still as busy 15 years on with enthusiasts coming from far and wide to buy a unique piece as all Lizzie’s work is only sold through her studio.
With help from her parents, Lizzie opened the farm shop in 2012. Initially the farm sold meat boxes from their own home bred beef and lambs. As well as the beef herd, John bought Valerie two Highland cattle to
celebrate their 25th wedding anniversary.
“If I’m honest, I think Dad bought them more for himself and I really don’t think Mum was terribly impressed,” said Lizzie with a smile.
But what started out as a hobby with just the two Highland cattle turned into a passion. The herd grew and now the farm has more than 70 cattle. Lizzie started to sell their meat through the farm shop too.
During our visit, we had the pleasure of meeting James, Lizzie’s prize Supreme Champion bull who was victorious at the Royal Welsh Agricultural Show and Malvern Three Counties Show in 2019. James is home-bred and will continue to live his idyllic life on the farm with his girlfriend and their two calves, one born in 2019 and the other who arrived this spring.
Lizzie’s appetite to run another business led to the opening of the tearoom in 2014. Many visitors are walkers as the Monarch’s Way passes through the family’s land and the tearoom is an ideal place to take a break and enjoy a drink and bite to eat. It is also popular with families looking for a good value place to stop while travelling on the nearby M5.
“What makes me smile is when parents and grandparents bring along children who love to pet the other animals kept on the farm,” said Lizzie.
“There are goats, a donkey and chickens whose eggs are sold through the farm shop. Sometimes children have
Lizzie with James, her Supreme Champion Highland bull
been in tears as they just don’t want to leave.
“My vision has always been to share my passion for farming with everyone. The livestock at Chadwich Farm have a stress-free life and when their time of life comes to that point their meat can be bought from the very farm where they have lived all their lives.”
If you want to know exactly where your food comes from and have an interest in the environment, Completely Bromsgrove would recommend anyone to pop along to Lizzie’s Farm Shop.
During the pandemic Lizzie has had to close the tearoom and gallery, and has been running the farmshop single handed. It is open Thursday to Saturday 10- 5pm and 10-4pm Sunday. The tearoom and gallery are scheduled to reopen at the start of July in line with government guidelines.
Lizzie added that she had seen a lot of younger families using the farm shop during the lockdown who were reluctant to venture out to the larger supermarkets and hopes that they will continue to be customers throughout the summer and beyond.
