Farm shop owners blame cost of living for closure

Keelham Food Hall, one of the region's largest farm shops, closed shortly after Christmas

The owners of a North Yorkshire farm shop have shed new light on the reason for its sudden closure.

Keelham Food Hall in Skipton, formerly known as Keelham Farm Shop, closed on 28 December.

A statement issued on social media blamed cost of living pressures, food inflation and interest rate hikes for the decision.

It added that "active efforts" were being made to secure new ownership and save jobs.

The company did not say how many jobs had been lost, but its latest accounts, filed in 2022, showed it employed 145 people.

The statement said: “It is with real regret that we announce that Keelham Food Hall has taken the difficult step to close.

"Over the last 18 months, we have done all we can to try and turn around the business and keep it going, by creating a differentiated local food offering with adjacent services and experiences for customers, rebranding our store, as well as taking action to simplify our supply chain.

"Despite these efforts, a combination of factors including cost of living pressures, food inflation and higher interest rates means we simply have not been able to attract enough regular shoppers to cover the ever-increasing fixed overheads of the store and create a viable business moving forward.

"There are active efforts being made for the business to be taken over to secure jobs as soon as possible.

"We’d like to thank our customers, partners and suppliers and in particular all of our staff for their hard work over the years."

The closure also affected its on-site restaurants - the Keelham Kitchen and Knead Pizzeria - as well as the Kind at Keelham fitness centre, according to an earlier statement on Keelham's Facebook page.

Its online store has ceased trading, a separate message on its website said.

The 25,000 sq ft (2,323 sq m) farm shop in Skipton was opened in 2015 by sister and brother team Victoria and James Robertshaw.

It was a second unit for their original Keelham farm shop in Thornton, Bradford.

The two farm shops separated in 2019 and the Skipton business was sold to investors in 2020.

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