Deli with a personal touch (From Gazette & Herald)

Deli with a personal touch

A bustling Helmsley delicatessen has weathered tough times to maintain its popularity and success.

Hunters was not the only business in the town to suffer the effects of flash floods on tourism last year.

But when supermarket domination has never been greater, keeping the profits healthy in an independent food store cannot be easy.

"We give personal service, pay attention to people's requirements, make them feel welcome and make sure they enjoy the experience of coming here," said proprietor Tony Cowley, who opened Hunters in 1997.

"And we provide a level of service that has gone out of fashion these days."

With 12 staff manning the modest two-storey shop in the corner of the market place, service is friendly, helpful, fast and efficient. "We have a high ratio of staff for the size of the business and it is all part of that ethos of tailoring the experience to the customer's needs," said Tony.

He will go to every effort to get whatever food or ingredient a customer asks him for.

"We're very open to people's requirements and suggestions," he said. "That's how we've built our stock levels over the years."

The store caters for gluten free or diabetic diets, and boasts an extensive cheese counter, stocked with 85 different cheeses including almost every variety of Yorkshire cheese.

The impressive wine list includes local country wines and beers from the local micro breweries.

Home made jams and chutneys, as well as spices, sauces and pate, nestle alongside both cooked and fresh meats, and game in season as well as local venison.

"It's specialist in a simple way," said Tony. "People know more and are more interested in food now. Especially with people going abroad more, they see other types of food and want to be able to use them."

He sells as many local products as he can, and aims to provide the best quality food at the best prices.

Like most businesses in Helmsley, Hunters benefits from tourism, but it has a strong base of regular local customers, too.

"When I say regular, I don't mean people who live in a 400-yard radius, it's more like a 20-mile radius," he said. "People who live in the town do use us, but our typical local is someone who visits every four to six weeks on a day out. It is a good location because there are none of the big supermarkets nearby. The big stores are too greedy, they want all-year-round trade, they don't want the two quiet months we go through at the beginning of the year."

But, having just got the slow period out of the way, Hunters is gearing up for Easter and the start of the season, a popular time for the ultimate Hunters tailor-made experience.

"Our hampers are a very popular service and we do an awful lot for Christmas and Easter," said Tony.

"They can either be made up in standard orders with a selection of ingredients designed for special occasions like Christmas and Easter and birthday treats, or you can pick and mix to make up your own hamper and have it delivered anywhere in the UK. It's whatever suits the customer."

Updated: 14:00 Wednesday, April 05, 2006