where it all began...

 The first seeds of the business were planted back in 2007. As he started to cultivate the beginnings of an orchard in his family’s small acreage in Long Hanborough, little did Jon know it would be the start of a life changing journey ahead… 

Trapped in a constraining job in publishing on the 9-5 treadmill, Jon would often daydream outside his office window,

observing the changing seasons with a sigh. He wanted to be out there, in the mud, feeling alive.

That was the moment. He walked away from his desk and never looked back. 

After finding a job with a local landscaper, Jon enrolled one day a week at Abingdon & Witney College Farm Campus.

Every Thursday he would arrive (late!) but eager to learn on this horticultural diploma.

There his eyes met over a crowded classroom with those of  Lucy. She was enrolled on to the course as part

of her apprenticeship as a gardener at the beautiful grounds of Worcester College, Oxford.

They soon formed a mutual bond over their passion for growing plants, the outdoors and local food.

A romance soon bloomed and with it the beginnings of what would become The Market Garden.

We started growing fruit and a variety of vegetables for friends and family on the land,

sometimes having surplass after a glut. This is when Jon decided to approach Corin at the Eynsham Emporium.

He knew there used to be a weekly vegetable stall which had recently stopped and thought perhaps we could fill the breach.

In June of 2009 we set up our very first stall in the car park of the Emporium to a fantastic reception.

Many customers we still have through our doors to this day. Every Saturday we would arrive bright and early

after a late night picking our produce and preparing the salad mix for sale the next morning.

We were both still working full time alongside growing the veg on what had become our smallholding.

After our marriage in September 2009, we both decided to leave the safety of our jobs and concentrate

on the growing and markets full time. It was tiring work but very fulfilling.

We were out there come rain, come shine, and on one memorable market day, come snow! 

It was on days like this we would look wistfully over the road at the old Taylors Racing and wonder: could we open a shop?

Having hailed from a family of shopkeepers Lucy had no doubt, but we had a battle on our hands.

We were in competition for the lease with a kebab shop. Having set up a petition of support we were also

incredibly lucky to have financial help in the form of a loan from loyal customers as well as Eynsham Cellars.

This enabled us to offer six months rent in advance to our prospective landlords and this is what swung it in our favour.

After a lot of hard graft turning a nicotine riddled shell into a shop, in May 2012 we opened the doors of

The Market Garden to the village - with the ribbon cut by local celebrity chef Sophie Grigson. 

Over the years we built our little shop up to become a one-stop-shop for local produce, 

supplementing our own produce with those of other local bakers, makers and producers in the area.

We prioritised local first, then British, then continental, preferring organic where the price was right.

What we had not grown ourselves we sourced as locally and ethically as possible, with flavour and quality utmost in mind. 

At this point after six years of trading in this location, we couldn’t fit much more in the shop if we tried!

We began looking at other locations to open up another branch, even putting an offer in for a lease in Woodstock.

Fortunately, as it turned out, it was not to be. We later learned that year that Corin at the Emporium

was looking to retire and wondered if we’d be interested in taking over her lease. 

Well you can guess our answer! In 2018 we came full circle and moved into the larger premises while

Corin continued to run the cafe side of things for the interim. This extra space allowed for us to expand our

selection of fruit, veg and wholefoods; adding a deli section, as well as becoming the first shop in

Oxfordshire to offer zero waste shopping and refills on a large scale.

After a year we were ready to take on the cafe business as well, rolling our sleeves up to put our stamp on the space,

reopening after refurbishment in November 2019. We had a few months to get into the swing of things,

neither of us having had any experience in hospitality, just in time for a world wide pandemic!

2020 was without doubt a challenging year and we would not have gotten through it without the support of the community and the army of volunteers who enabled us to continue to deliver food to the vulnerable who needed it.

We thank each and every one of you. Ultimately, this is what the business is all about - the community.

Having recently celebrated our 10th birthday in 2022 - another tough year with family bereavement, break-ins and the global economy - we reaffirm our belief now more than ever, that local food is the only way forward for a sustainable future.

The model of industrial farming, standardisation and centralised distribution has done nothing for the flavour,

freshness, quality or variety of food, not to mention consuming vast quantities of fossil fuels.

 Looking back, what began with the two of us has grown with the care and kindness of many others.

Our wonderful team, local producers, co-farmers, neighbours & customers who have cheered us on through every chapter.

Our community has helped make The Market Garden what it is today.

There are plenty more exciting ideas taking root and we’re looking forward to seeing where they lead. In the meantime, you’ll find us tending the land, cooking in the café and finding room for one more good thing on the shelves.

Forever thankful that a crowded classroom brought us together and that Eynsham gave us a place to grow.