Family butcher’s opens third shop in £120K expansion plan

Well-known family butcher’s Eric Lyons has marked a successful first six months since opening a third shop backed by a fund set up to drive West Midlands mayor Richard Parker's plan to grow the region's economy.

More than 120 years since the family business took on its first store in Knowle, Solihull, the current generation of the Lyons family secured a £60,000 grant - matched by their own investment – to expand into neighbouring Bentley Heath.

The SME Grant fund is managed for the mayor by Business Growth West Midlands (BGWM).

The funding given to Eric Lyons brought an empty high street shop back into use with a major refurbishment and new specialist equipment.

It has grown the company’s workforce to 30 staff and turnover is expected to increase by 25 per cent.

Eric Lyons’ name remains above the door with the business now under the custodianship of the fourth and fifth generations of the family – Eric’s grandsons, Nick and Dan Lyons, and their dad David.

They share the Mayor’s commitment to providing more jobs and training opportunities to young people and promoted 21-year-old Ollie Harrison to manage the new shop.

Ollie is being helped by 20-year-old former apprentice Joe Dillane, who has progressed through the ranks after joining the business straight from school.

The mayor said: “Nick, Dan and their dad David are ambitious custodians of this long standing and successful local business. They are vocal advocates for their high street and share my commitment to giving opportunities to young talent. I'm backing the business to be around for another 100 years.

 “I promised to support our high streets and that's what I'm doing. I’m giving businesses the funding and support they need to grow, create jobs, and drive our economy forward.

“We’ve already given £10 million of grants and supported more than 11,000 businesses but there is still more to do.”

Nick Lyons, director of Eric Lyons, said: “Our expansion would not have been possible without the grant and the support we had from our BGWM account manager Charlotte Bowden.

“Both were pivotal in allowing us to take on and fully refurbish the new shop to the standard our customers expect. It’s enabled us to grow our team, support young leadership within the store, and increase our reach across the region.

“Bentley Heath would have been without a butcher’s and many residents are extremely pleased with it carrying on.

“This shop is a real asset to our business and it’s already playing a key role in our growth along with our shops in Knowle and Wootton Wawen.”

BGWM was set up by the Mayor and West Midlands Combined Authority (WMCA) to provide the region’s SMEs with tailored packages that help them grow, adopt digital technologies, transition to new supply chains, and access funding opportunities.

SME Grants are delivered in partnership with the WMCA’s local authority members.

Pictured (L-R): Jon Lander, business investment manager for Solihull Council, Ollie Harrison, Nick Lyons and Joe Dillane, from Eric Lyons, and Business Growth West Midlands advisor Charlotte Bowden