What a journey - six years of Cheese on Towcest' and two since we opened The Cheese Place
Six years ago, in the height of the C-Word (and clue... it wasn't Christmas), I decided on a whim to set up a side hustle selling cheese boxes in, yup, you've guessed it...Towcester! All I had to start with was a simple idea and the sort of nervous excitement that comes with starting something from the kitchen table (quite literally). Fast forward to 2026 and writing this on the same kitchen table, it feels like both yesterday, and a lifetime ago. Never could I have imagined that it would still be going, let alone being my full-time job. What started as, well a bit of a hobby really, has grown into a thriving cheese-loving business. It's easy to get bogged down in the day to day, and as some of you will appreciate, running your own business is no mean feat. So I thought I'd take a bit of time to reflect on the journey so far - I'll never not be grateful for being able to make a living out of something I'm so passionate about.
There have been joyful moments, tough lessons, long days, late nights, and more washing up than anyone could have imagined (don't get Mrs Cheese started on the aprons!) There have also been many loyal customers, kind messages, returning faces, local support, and the steady reminder that cheese has a lovely way of bringing people together.
This is a toast to our milestone (or should it be towcest'), but it is also a thank you.
From lockdown side hustle to something much bigger
Like many small businesses, the beginning was all about trying things to see what worked, and what didn't. Thankfully, as those of you who know me would testify, I'm a little bit of a chatterbox - some may say the gift of the gab - which, it turns out, is pretty handy when you're starting out, and your business is built on the people, the customers, the cheese lovers. I could chat stilton and brie all day long, quite literally chew your ear off! It was the cheesy chat that led the way at the markets I started doing back in 2020 - and how I built up such a loyal customer base with the online cheese boxes. In fact, we still have some of the original customers buying cheese - something I will never take for granted. Initially people were looking for ways to make ordinary days feel special - it was a privilege to brighten people's days, and doorsteps, with a little box of yummy cheese - and it grew from there. Being part of people's special moments was, and continues to be, such an honour, and it's what makes all the hard work worthwhile. One of my first deliveries was a birthday present to a woman who had just given birth to their first child an hour beforehand in their lounge - turns out the cheese wasn't the only delivery that day!
At first, it was a lot of late nights and it was very much trial and error - mistakes were made and lessons learnt, before the cheese could mature too much. We look back now and cringe and laugh at how, when I first started out, I was hacking at cheese with kitchen knives (not a cheese wire in sight) and hand-writing every single label for the cheeses - which took a lot of time and I couldn't do it myself. The early days needed a lot of belief, or blind faith, because there was no guarantee that people would come back. But they did and many of them still do which I find staggering.
Customers who placed one order came back with another. They told friends. They bought gifts. They asked for recommendations. They shared what they liked and what they wanted to see next. Gradually, the business started feeling like something that had longevity. Something more than a side hustle.
Bricks and mortar - opening The Cheese Place
Then came The Cheese Place. Opening up a shop felt like the next natural step, and I was presented with an opportunity I couldn't turn down. The timing wasn't ideal though - being a few months away from the birth of our second child, life was about to get a whole lot busier and chaotic, but looking back now, I wouldn't have it any other way. Having an actual premises hasn't been without its challenges - there are a lot more bills to pay - and given that we're a little out of the way of the main high street (at the Wharf distillery, 2 Brackley Road), it has been harder to get people to come our way. Staffing has been a whole new ballgame for me too, but thankfully we've had some fantastic people passionate about The Cheese Place, and cheese, who have really helped grow it, and continue to do so.
Two years in and we're now open Wednesdays - Saturdays along with a Friday night each month for a tasting evening. We serve cheeseboards, toasties and other cheesy treats, and also have a fully stocked cheese counter. I'm super grateful to be building a loyal customer base too - and really value feedback from people.
The reality behind the counter
From the outside, running a cheese business can look somewhat straightforward. Delicious cheese, happy customers and all you've got to do is chat cheese all day. Well, I do a lot of that, but running the business for six years has taken a lot. A lot of early starts, late finishes, a lot of questioning, doubts, risks, worries, admin, planning, margins, the list goes on!
Finding balance has been one of the biggest lessons. And I still haven't cracked it. But I'm getting there in terms of knowing when to push through the busy periods, when to ask for help and when to accept that not everything can be done at once.
The customers have made the business what it is
I've also learnt that community isn't a nice extra. It's an essential part of building a small business that matters locally. Towcester has been our home now for nine years; the people we have met, the kindness shown and the support I've received, has been incredible.
There have been customers who supported the business from the first lockdown orders and who still turn up at the markets now. We have so many regulars who come and see us at Towcester Market once a month, as well as the other weekly and monthly markets. And since opening The Cheese Place, it has been lovely to see regular faces in there too.
One of the best compliments I get is when people trust me to choose which cheese I think they'll like. It's great getting to know what people enjoy - and then being able to match a cheese for them. I like to think I get it right most of the time but there are probably times, they turn their nose up at my suggestion (the Baron Bigod isn't for everyone!)
I've had so much support in different ways - not just with orders but also reviews people have taken the time to write, shares on social media, people recommending us and encouraging conversations on harder days. When people have chosen to buy from a small independent business when they could have gone somewhere bigger or easier, it means so much.
A thank you to everyone who has been part of it
Anniversaries are a good excuse to reflect and say thank you properly.
Thank you to the people who bought from Cheese on Towcest' in the very beginning, when it was still finding its feet. Thank you to everyone who has walked through the doors of The Cheese Place over the last two years. Thank you to the toastie fans, the cheeseboard queens, the tasting night guests, the gift buyers, the regulars, the first-timers, and the people who recommend us, and those who give us feedback.
Thank you for choosing independent. Thank you for being patient on busy days. Thank you for celebrating the wins and offering kindness during the harder bits. Thank you for every message, order, review, and return visit.
Most of all, thank you for making this journey feel worthwhile.
The next chapter will bring new ideas, more learning, and almost certainly more challenges. But it will also bring more cheese, more conversations and more chances to create something people enjoy.
Here’s to the customers, the cheese, the resilience, and whatever comes next.
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