Speciality Food Inspirational Cheese Retailers 2025

something new coming in. Standing still is a dangerous place to be in retail nowadays.” Unashamedly a deli Being a deli, and not offering food-to-go, is important to Ian. “It means we’ve got space to showcase some fantastic products. It’s only a small shop, but we’ve got 15 different types of pasta, and many things are cheaper than the supermarket. We keep costs down, but also give people a choice of something different.” The experience of visiting Broad Bean can be an “assault on the senses” he adds. “We’ve got so much in here. And because the counter is at the back of the shop, you do have to do a journey to get to it!” More than 40 types of cheese grace the chiller, and while there are always a few key offerings you’ll find on the regular, like Cheddars and Baron Bigod, Ian says he continues to refresh 38 @specialityfood I f you were given a map and asked to plot out destinations renowned for their food and drink, Ludlow would certainly make the cut. It’s the perfect location for Broad Bean deli, and this is something owner Ian Evans doesn’t take for granted. Ian, who originally set his sights on fishmongery before switching to butchery, landing a position as a butcher to the Royals at Sandringham, made the move to Ludlow to be closer to family in Wales. “The drive was five or six hours. It was ridiculous! I was trying to find a shop of my own, and my wife was a teacher. She was happy to work in a shop, but didn’t want a butchers, so we compromised on a deli. We saw this one in Ludlow. It needed quite a bit of work, but there was a lot of potential. I thought, ‘we can do something with that’.” Keeping it old school “I always saw this as being an old school deli, and that stands us out from the crowd,” Ian explains. “We’re not a cafe or a sandwich bar selling a few deli bits. Most of the products people come in for are ingredients they, as cooks or chefs, will use at home. My ambition was to be as good as Wally’s in Cardiff. I thought if we could be half as good as themwe’d be OK!” Nine years in, and the deli continues to grow exponentially. “Which means we must be doing something right. We’re not the same business as we were this time last year. There’s always LOCATION: LUDLOW FOUNDED: 1977 (TAKEN OVER 2016) OWNER: IAN EVANS Broad Bean The Old Schoolers In one word, Ian says it’s passion that makes a cheesemonger stand out. “Passion for provenance. Passion for the product. Passion for the affinage and the display. For me, after a stressful day, it’s therapeutic to stay after work and restock the counter. Being in the zone, enjoying the smells, textures and colours. Creating a display is important as well. You’ve got to remember you’re not curating a ‘cheese museum’ - people should be excited by how your cheese looks.” WHAT MAKES A GREAT CHEESEMONGER? MIDLANDS