How independent retailers can foster positive, inclusive staff cultures

For independent food and drink retailers, a thriving staff culture isn’t just a nice-to-have, it’s a necessity.

How such a culture can be built and maintained is one of the topics to be discussed by retail leaders at the UK Food & Drink Shows in April.

Held at the NEC Birmingham from Monday 13 to Wednesday 15 April, the UK Food & Drink Shows comprises four individual events: Farm Shop & Deli Show, Food & Drink Expo, Forecourt Show and the National Convenience Show. For more information see the end of this article.

Each show features a packed programme of presentations and discussions, including Staff Culture: Building a Team to Thrive, which will take place at 1.45pm on Monday 13 April.

In this session, a panel of specialist retailers explore how cultivating a positive, inclusive, and purpose-driven workplace can directly affect customer experience, employee retention and business performance.

Ahead of next month’s event, we asked two of the panellists to tell us a little about themselves, and what they see as some of the key issues affecting the retailers: 

Emma Mosey, owner of Yolk Farm and past chair of the Farm Retail Association
Mosey is a novelist who has written two books under her maiden name of Emma Chapman. Emma and her husband lived overseas for 10 years, returning to the UK in 2017 to found Yolk Farm: the world’s first egg-themed farm park and restaurant. Over the past three years she has served as the chair of the Farm Retail Association, leading the organisation through a major rebrand and intensifying its national lobbying efforts at Westminster.

Iain Hemming, owner, Salt Deli Kitchen
Hemming says he has been “fantastically lucky” to have worn almost all the hats in the food supply chain. He has managed retail sites, made cheese, set up a food distribution business and held senior sales positions. He opened Thyme & Tides – a deli, bistro & fishmonger in Stockbridge, Hampshire – which he sold to his managers after 15 years to concentrate on Salt Deli Kitchen. This roadside concept, on the A30 in a former Little Chef site, continues to go from strength to strength, he says, with a 750 sq ft gifting area being added at the end of last year.

What has been your career highlight?

Iain Hemming (IH): Seeing two of my fledgling weekenders from Thyme & Tides go on to launch two fantastically successful businesses of their own – ‘Grette and River Coffee. ‘Grette will be at the Farm Shop & Deli Show, their first trade show, and they already have 130 indie stockists. I’m now proud to be a shareholder.

Emma Mosey (EM): Witnessing Yolk Farm grow into a multifaceted destination that employs 35 local people is a constant highlight – when we bought the business, it was just Ben and myself and one other member of staff. On a national level, successfully lobbying for the inclusion of farmers’ markets in the government food strategy and seeing the u-turn on Inheritance Tax changes in late 2025 were massive wins for our sector.

What is the best piece of professional advice you have been given?

IH: My trainer at YTS level when I was 16 would walk around the shop with me for 10 minutes each morning as soon as we had arrived at work. Looking at each department, he would say “fresh eyes identify improvements for that day that you’ll not see for the rest of the day”. At the same time, take the opportunity to say good morning and interact with each member of your team to check they are OK.

EM: Don’t try to be a smaller, cheaper version of your competitors – double down on what makes you different. In farm retail, we cannot win on price wars against supermarkets, but we can win on authenticity, provenance and soul.

As a retailer, what is the biggest challenge when recruiting and retaining staff?

IH: We do not have a team turnover problem at Salt. New members quickly realise we are different than most and genuinely care about their welfare and self-improvement as humans and as team members.

EM: The ‘experience economy’ demands high-level soft skills, but the current cost of living crisis makes it difficult to compete with the wage packages of larger, non-rural corporations. Retaining staff means proving that a career in a farm shop offers more fulfilment and community impact than a standard retail job.

How do you feel young people view food & drink retail as a career?

IH: Many join without aspirations to move forward in this sector. I have two members of my team who joined at assistant levels now being assistant manager and deli buyer to a general manager. Nurture, support, play to their strengths and reward.

EM: Historically, it was seen as a stop-gap job. However, we are seeing a shift. Young people today are highly values-driven: they care about sustainability and where their food comes from. If we can frame retail as being part of the solution to the climate and food crisis, it becomes a much more attractive, purpose-led career.

What attributes do you look for in an individual when recruiting?

IH: A friendly smile and, in most cases, active hobbies.

EM: I hire for attitude and train for skill. I look for resilience, a genuine ‘people-first’ personality, and an innate curiosity. If someone cares about the story behind a product, they will be able to sell that story to a customer. In upper management, I look for attention to detail, people management skills and an ability to stay calm under pressure.

What successful methods have you employed to encourage staff to feel part of a team?

IH: Full Bupa membership and trained mental health first aiders on the team. Salt Deli Kitchen retains a nutritional therapist who designs our team’s break food. Our nutritional therapist also writes programmes for certain team members who have health concerns and supports them through this process. We have two of our team currently on this programme, and Salt pays for this.

We organise weekly yoga classes and pay 50% towards the team cost to attend. With the upsurge of padel we are starting monthly padel nights for the team.Each team member votes for full-time and weekender awards, and winners collect their trophies and vouchers at our Christmas party.

Every December we give each team member a ‘You’re My Favourite Customer, Thank You!’ badge that they give to their favourite customers to thank them for being so nice and brightening their days. This has had a tremendously positive effect with some customers being in tears, and making the team feel very good.

We landscaped half an acre of space so that team can take time away from the business on their breaks, feeling rested an revitalised on their return.

EM: Transparency and shared wins. At Yolk Farm, we make sure the team understands the ‘why’ behind what we do. We have also leaned into modern communication, using tools like dedicated WhatsApp groups for peer-to-peer support has been a game-changer for team cohesion.

How do you ensure staff remain engaged with your business and their role within it?

IH: We have a ‘fresh air’ box in the team rest room where they can leave suggestions confidentially for management. We run regular team appraisals twice per year.

EM: Engagement comes from empowerment. We give our team members ownership over specific areas, whether that’s a section of the shop or a particular event. When they see their ideas implemented and successful, they aren’t just employees; they are stakeholders in our success. We also focus on constant professional development to ensure there is always a next step available to them.