A family butchers which has been run by two brothers since they were 15 has announced it will be closing down. The popular butchers in Retford has served customers for 146 years.
The brothers have more than 90 years of experience between them, with both having started when they were each 15 years old. Younger brother Roger, 56, said he remembers leaving school on a Friday, having two days to relax over the weekend, and then starting up at the Churchgate butcher on the Monday. But now, there is no one left to pick up the mantle.
"It's a bit strange and it's a bit daunting, but it's time to let it go. You have to embrace it." Though it did not play a major part in the brothers' decision, Roger said the business was becoming more and more expensive to run in light of the widening cost of living crisis. With refrigerators running every minute of every day, they had seen a jump in their electricity bills from £500 to £2,000.
But with that last hurrah behind them, they have put the building up for sale and expect to be gone 'imminently'. While it "could be nice" to see a new butcher open in the same spot, Roger said: "Whatever the next person does with it, it's up to them.