Meet the Northamptonshire pop up business bringing local produce to rural villages and beyond

A Northamptonshire pop up business, which brings local produce to rural villages who lack access to such amenities, has shared the success of the past year-and-a-half.

Rick Sharpe founded The Roaming Artisan in May 2021 during the pandemic, when living in a rural village himself made him realise the impact the lack of facilities had on fellow residents.

With a lack of pubs, eateries and places to be exposed to Northamptonshire’s local produce, Rick began by bringing pies and bakery goods to his village, nearby to Market Harborough.

The premise of the business is hosting pop up events across the county and beyond, which has now expanded to Northampton, Leicester, Lutterworth, Market Harborough and Kibworth.

Rick, 37, said: “We thought we had a good ear to the ground and an idea of the local produce around us, but you discover more and more as you go.

“Loads of villages reached out about us visiting them and a calendar of events was soon in place.”

The products supplied range from honey and condiments, to cheeses and coffee beans.

It was this time last year that Rick ventured properly into Northamptonshire, as previously it had remained between Harborough, Kibworth and Lutterworth.

He has made good visits to East Haddon and Chapel Brampton, and found there were many individuals visiting from the heart of Northampton – who wanted to begin moving away from the supermarkets on their doorsteps.

Talking about the importance of connecting people to local produce, Rick said: “We have become complacent with supermarkets.

“With the cost of living and seeking cheaper alternatives, people are realising you reap the rewards when you invest in the local community.

“Seeking out emerging brands is exciting and a passion of mine – and we have seen so many move to the next level and introduce new products.”

Rick spoke of Yellow Bourbon Coffee Roasters in Angel Street, who he stocks and visited this week to pick up more produce.

The Roaming Artisan’s founder says he was pleased to learn the business was doing well with more people returning to their jobs in the town centre, and sales are up by between 20 and 30 percent.

“Customers recognise a quality product and want to spend money on it,” said Rick. “But it will be interesting to see if people are in the position to continue doing so this year.”

Rick says he has noticed more younger families are now moving to the rural, village communities, and they are keen to see more from The Roaming Artisan.

The business hopes to expand to pop up pubs with local breweries and distilleries, supper clubs with local chefs, and food discovery nights and tastings.

The plan is to continue bringing more amenities to the rural locations with fewer ways to experience local produce, as they have done for the past year-and-a-half.

The Roaming Artisan is hosting two pop ups in Sibbertoft and West Haddon this weekend (February 3 and 4), and will be in Guilsborough next weekend.

For more information on these events, visit The Roaming Artisan’s Facebook page here.