A family-run butcher and fishmonger shop in Witham is celebrating 50 years of trading.

L Holt Butchers and Fishmongers, in Newland Street, is still going strong half-a-century after first opening its doors.

The business was established in its current property, 88 Newland Street, by Leonard Holt, on November 23, 1953, after he transferred from premises farther down the town.

As the doors were opened to customers, rationing was finally coming to an end.

The business expanded ten years later when a nearby fishmonger decided to quit his business and persuaded Mr Holt to take it over with him in charge of the fishmonger section.

Mr Holt said: "It turned out to be a very successful side to the business. It was still in the days when there was a lot of fish eating going on."

In 2000, Mr Holt retired, but the family link continued when his son, Tony, and daughters, Judy and Deborah, took the business on with help from three staff members

Published Tuesday November 18, 2003

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