A popular family-owned butchers has opened a new store close to the seaside to coincide with its 50th birthday.

And Swiss Farm Butchers had a bumper day of trade, welcoming hundreds of customers on the first day to Hall Farm Lane in Aldeburgh, which is the third outlet in Suffolk and north Essex.

To celebrate, staff organised a barbecue where customers could taste some of the produce for free and enjoy the unseasonably warm, sunny weather.

George Ridgway, manager of the Aldeburgh store, said: “It has been so busy. We have had a brilliant response. It has been so much better than we could have expected.”

The location was chosen because there was space for car parking, in keeping with the other Swiss Farm stores, while there are also views of the sea and nearby salt marshes.

The design of the premises aimed to provide a ‘cool, modern feel’ to attract customers in the town and the surrounding area, including towns such as Leiston.

The layout of the new branch and the products on offer are identical to the other shops, which have 40ft long counters and lots of meat on display.

The new premises offers all the traditional meats, including sausages, bacon, beef and a lot of chicken.

The butchers, founded by Mr Ridgway’s grandmother Dot, already has two branches in Ashbocking and Great Bromley.

In March, the EADT reported that the company had defied difficulties for traditional family butchers caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.

The rise of out-of-town supermarkets has also posed challenges for the industry.

Mr Ridgway added: “It has been a fantastic day. The weather has been beautiful and we managed to sell out of all our sausages on the barbecue.”