A shop at the heart of village life — and it needs your support

HOLNE Village Shop is appealing to the community to help secure its future, with a simple message: ‘Use it or lose it’.

The shop, which has served the village for 15 years, is largely run by volunteers and provides far more than the basics expected of a small village store.

Alongside groceries and household essentials, it stocks local produce, specialist foods and a surprisingly wide range of everyday items.

But rising costs, a shortage of volunteers and a remaining loan of around £43,000 mean the shop needs more support if it is to remain sustainable.

Manager Paul Arrowsmith said the shop turns over around £170,000 a year, but makes only about £5,000 profit.

‘It has a bigger value than that’, he said. ‘It’s about the value of the community and the people. But we have to be sustainable because we can’t afford to run at a loss’.

The shop has already survived one major crisis.

Fifteen years ago, the previous owners were struggling financially and the shop was facing closure, with plans to turn the building into a house.

Because of its location within Dartmoor National Park, however, permission for the change of use was refused.

The village subsequently came together to save the shop, raising more than £80,000 to get it going again.

Today, around 18 volunteers help keep it running.

‘They are very loyal to us, and this would not work without them’, said Paul.

The volunteers save the shop more than £30,000 a year in wages, with Paul himself working part-time as manager, while donating additional hours.

The shop has also deliberately expanded the range it carries.

When Paul returned as manager after an eight- or nine-year absence, the value of the stock increased from around £4,000 to approximately £15,000.

‘The choice is key’, he said. ‘Sometimes we can get things in smaller numbers. Otherwise we'd have to buy a whole pack of 24 or something like that’.

Customers can find everything from fresh bread and fruit and vegetables to vegan and gluten-free products, ice cream, local honey and less obvious items such as socks and kefir.

Much of the produce comes through local or family-run suppliers, including fruit and vegetables from Bovey Tracey and bread from Torbay.

The shop also benefits from visitors.

The Dartmoor Two Moors Way passes through Holne, while nearby holiday lets and camping fields bring a regular stream of walkers and visitors.

The adjoining tearoom, owned by the shop but independently run by a young couple who moved from Plymouth, provides another reason for people to visit.

However, Paul says local custom remains crucial.

Holne has only around160 residents, with another 200 or so in the surrounding area.

The shop is therefore asking residents to consider buying a few more items locally each week rather than making the journey elsewhere.

It is also urgently seeking additional volunteers.

Shifts are three hours and can be weekly, monthly or simply whenever people have time to spare.

And there will soon be an opportunity for members of the community to buy shares in the shop, providing an additional financial boost and helping secure its long-term future.

‘We are not far off being sustainable’, said Paul. ‘Using the shop to buy a few more things a week would make all the difference’.