- ABOUT US -
There were once 14 general stores in Rothbury and several more in small villages throughout the Coquet valley.
Tully’s, along with David Carr’s award winning shop in Longframlington, is sadly the one of the few shops remaining attempting to carry the flag of traditional grocery forward
In 1998 Edwin Tully, the third generation of this family of grocers, along with his wife Mary, having no-one to pass the business on to, sold the concern to Rich and Sue Hurst who have dedicated the last 12 years to carrying on the tradition of fine foods in the valley.
Ongoing refurbishment and restoration of the shop interior has recently exposed the original full wood panelling which was the hallmark of this type of shop more than 50 years ago.
Their motivation when taking over the helm was to maintain and build on the strengths of a business entrenched in the local community and the philosophy is to be as traditional and ethical as we can. Local produce therefore is the cornerstone of our business.
In recent years we have been encouraged by the number of small producers appearing. Generally speaking if it is locally produced we will have a go at selling it even if it is a non-food item. One of our aims is to help local producers to get their businesses off the ground. This is, of course, mutually beneficial.
Some examples of what we classify as local produce are listed below although we do appreciate that some of the raw materials involved may not actually originate in Northumbria, e.g. coffee, tea:
100 Years
Tully’s have been operating a grocery service in the Coquet Valley for over 120 years. In the early years they used to take a travelling shop, a horse and cart in those days, as far as Otterburn and the North Coquet Valley where members of the farming communities would meet them at traditional trading points.
A delivery service is still available today albeit using a more modern mode of transport to reach those who, for various reasons, are unable to get to the shops under their own steam at any particular time