Steve Holcombe

AF Blakemore & Son Ltd

With more than 100 years of heritage and a trading area that spans across England and Wales, A.F. Blakemore & Son Ltd is one of the UK's most successful family owned companies. The company began life in 1917 as a counter service grocery store, and has grown from these humble beginnings into a company that now employs more than 7,500 people and has a turnover circa £1.1 billion. Food and drink have always been the lifeblood of A.F. Blakemore and the business now entails retail, wholesale distribution, food service, logistics, specialist foods and shop fitting divisions. As one of the largest divisions of SPAR UK, A.F. Blakemore owns 280 SPAR stores and serves more than 1,000 in total across England and Wales. The company is also a member of the Unitas Wholesale group and a significant supplier to the independent grocery sector across the UK. A.F. Blakemore has always been committed to developing a loyal and dedicated workforce that is focused upon excellent customer service and behaving with integrity. The company has always strived to build partnerships with suppliers and trade partners while never underestimating the role that it plays within the communities it serves. Underpinning everything that A.F. Blakemore does is the company's values statement, the Blakemore Way. This highlights what A.F. Blakemore stands for and the way that the company has always done and will continue to do business.