Plan to open Teals farm shop between Stamford and the A1, near Burghley Park

A large farm shop could provide an alternative to supermarket shopping if a couple’s plans win approval.

Nick and Ash Sinfield opened Teals near Yeovil, Somerset, in 2021 and want to replicate its style and ethics at George Farm, between the A1 and Wothorpe on the edge of Stamford.

Teals in Stamford would sell produce from local farmers that can’t be bought in the town’s supermarkets.

“We want it to be a place where local suppliers can be represented,” said Nick, who said they had looked at 13 locations in the Stamford area before settling on George Farm, part of the Burghley Estate.

“Since we opened in Somerset people from different parts of the country have come through the doors asking if we can ‘transport’ Teals to their area.

“It’s not in our business plan to create a big monster of a business, but we are open-minded about having more branches if they would be appreciated.”

Teals would have a large food market area with a deli, a bakery, and a cheese monger.

There would be home and lifestyle products, gifts, books and a restaurant serving breakfast and lunch, and seating about 60 people.

Outside would be 24-hour electric vehicle charging points available to people regardless of whether or not they shop at Teals.

There would be solar panels on the roof.

“We see ourselves as guardians of what’s local,” Ash added.

“We try to be a place with good footfall where local suppliers can be represented.”

The couple came up with the idea for Teals about 25 years ago, when they were in their 20s and cycled across Africa.

Nick said: “We often came across very small, family-owned market stalls selling the fruit they had grown, which were lifelines for us at the time. Their hospitality stuck with us.”

Nick and Ash also saw farm stalls on the sides of the roads in South Africa, and the colourful spectacle of the different fruits and the way they were displayed has also inspired them.

“It was a great experience for the customer and we wanted to bring a bit of the spirit of that here,” said Nick.

It took some time for their experiences to formulate into Teals, with the couple becoming parents - their grown up daughter is called Teal, giving the business its name too - and working in different fields before becoming retail owners.

Their vision is for the business, which would have an 800 sqm footprint and about 1,300 sqm of retail floor space thanks to a mezzanine floor, to open in about a year’s time, if the planning process goes smoothly for them.

George Farm is within the boundaries of Peterborough City Council, despite being a stone’s throw from Stamford, and its planning committee will decide on the application.

Stamford Heavenly Chocolates was based at George Farm before it moved to Sacrewell Farm. The company ceased trading in March when the owner retired.

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