Britain’s Best Delis: Billington’s of Lenzie

Sue Billington never thought she’d run a shop. Neither did her husband Mark. But here they are today, alongside their son Nick, nearly 15 years later, with a strong following for their offering at Billington’s of Lenzie in Scotland’s Dunbartonshire. They even have their own gin!

That’s not to say the couple didn’t have any food and drink experience. Prior to taking on the premises in 2012, Mark worked as a buyer at Harrods for a long time, while Sue was in catering on and off for many years, starting out aged 15 in the kitchens of Guide Dogs for the Blind.

“I’d always loved cooking and always loved baking,” she says. “I’ve baked since I was a little girl. My mum was a really good baker and I kind of learnt off her, gaining those food skills and love of cooking and feeding people. When I met Mark, he was an area manager for a small chain of family-run Italian restaurants in Glasgow. When he finished with them, he got to the point where he thought he’d like to do something of his own.”

Sue and Mark looked at B&Bs, but nothing felt right. And then they discovered ‘the shop’. “We’d seen it the year before,” Sue recalls, but I wasn’t in a position to say yes. The idea of taking on a shop when the kids were at school! But we had a conversation, and a year later I thought, ‘why not?’.”

A new beginning

Lenzie is a small village in a quiet community. The kind of place, Sue says, where everyone knows each other.

The shop, in a historic Victorian building close to the train station, had previously been run as a deli, but sat empty for nearly four years.

Sue and Mark’s ambition was to showcase Mark’s love of (and expertise in) wine, while creating an old-fashioned style experience. “Like the shops you’d go to when you were a kid, with jars of sweets and lots of different delicious things on the shelves. A little Aladdin’s Cave,” Sue reflects. “I got that feeling when we walked in. I thought we could do a lot with the place, and it already had the shelving, furniture and deli fridge. It was kitted out ready to go. We also thought it would be nice as a takeaway coffee shop, so someone could come in, buy a coffee and panini for lunch, and get a bottle of wine and some pasta for tea.”

As she puts it, the idea grew arms and legs.

An evolving concept

Like all new businesses, what you want to do, and what you end up doing, can be two very different things. To succeed, you need to be led by your customers – and that’s exactly how Billington’s of Lenzie has taken shape. “From the first day,” says Sue, “people were asking if they could sit and eat on the bench against one wall, or have their soup or coffee in. They really wanted somewhere to go for a chat, so we got in some tables and chairs, and weren’t a takeaway for very long!”

The floorplan now seats 20 to 24 people and fast evolved into a coffee shop with deli – benefiting from having its own small kitchen area downstairs.

Both Mark and Sue have noticed, over the last few years, a growth in cafe culture, which suits them perfectly. “People don’t have quite so much money to spend, so they are tending to meet up for a coffee and a cake, or sandwich and soup rather than going out for a big meal,” thinks Sue. “People have become snobs with their coffees now too. We sell so many different types of coffee with different milks and syrups. It’s gone mad really. If customers are paying £3-£4 for a coffee, they want a decent coffee that will taste nice.”

The business uses a local roaster – Italian Aroma – for their blend, and it seems to be going down a treat with regulars.

Beyond a soothing cuppa or rich coffee, the most popular reason to visit the deli is for its cakes – from traditional carrot cake and banana bread, to apple slices, brownies and school style sprinkle cakes. A local baker produces the scones and pastries. “She makes everything from scratch with sourdough yeast, so it’s all beautiful and fresh and so wholesome with no chemicals whatsoever,” Sue explains. 

Then there are homemade soups, sausage rolls, locally made ‘to die for’ mini steak pies, homemade quiches, and of course an array of sandwiches.

Afternoon teas – served on proper China – are a weekly hit and, as a throwback from Covid, are still available to takeaway, alongside grazing boards and charcuterie platters.

On the shop floor

The coffee shop might be what draws customers, passersby and tourists into the deli, but they can’t leave without browsing and buying from the retail area of the store.

At the deli counter are a number of salamis, cured meats and sandwich fillings, alongside predominantly waxed and truckled cheeses.

Sue says, “We do so many things. Dog treats, locally made jams and chutneys, biscuits, cakes, spices, jars of pasta sauce and pastas, lots of different snacks and nuts. And we have a lovely chocolate counter where we sell chocolates by the gram, so you can come in and choose exactly what you want.”

The family very much lean into ‘local’, trying to source as much from the area as they possibly can, from milk and bread, to beers and spirits.

Including their own Lenzie Gin, which sits alongside Mark’s very extensive drinks collection in the shop. “We sell it in the shop and wholesale,” Sue says. “It certainly does well and it’s won quite a few awards.” The gin takes inspiration from the area around the shop, when it comes to its botanicals and feel. “Beyond where the building is The Moss – a beautiful walking area of woodland and marshes,” Sue explains. “Legend says there used to be a lot of bilberries and cranberries growing around The Moss, so we use those as part of our botanicals for the gin.” It’s a combination that’s clearly working, with the product having won Gin of the Year at the Gin Corporation Awards. “People who try it in the shop love it so much they come back to get it for gifts, and we send it all over the UK and to some restaurants as well.”

Bestsellers

High-end wines, whiskies and gins are big draws on the retail side of the deli, says Sue. “But we find what people really want is something different, whether that be a particular jam or chutney. My favourite products are definitely Bavarian Bakehouse for our breads, some of our cakes and pastries, and Johnston’s tablet, and Milk & Honey - a small ice cream producer based in Stirling not far from us. They do the most beautiful ice creams – out of this world. They’re all freshly made, with no additives or preservatives.”

For the love of food – and service

Sue says she adores being surrounded by products – old and new – and spending time at trade fairs discovering wonderful things she knows her customers will love as much as she does.

“That’s the best bit – looking for new products to entice my customers with, but also working with my family. My son Nick is co-manager with a young lady called Rose, and my husband and I work there, and we consider our staff family too. One member of the team who’d been working with us for five years from school is now going out into the world to do a ‘big boy job’. It’s nice to see them learn and develop and know things having come here not knowing a lot at all. Being able to do barista art, and making food they didn’t think they’d be able to make. It’s great.”

 

What does it take to run a successful deli?

Listening to customers is paramount, says Sue, but so is being diverse and keeping an eye on what people want, and the latest fads. “We do a lot of tastings in the shop every week!”

The team also try to be as innovative as possible. “During Covid we completely changed into a convenience shop. So we had a big display of fruit and vegetables, eggs and milk, bread and butter – all the essentials – and sent out care packages into the community, developing a delivery service as well. We delivered more afternoon teas than you’d believe! I know the locals were very grateful, especially elderly people who couldn’t get to the shops.”

Being there in this time of need naturally enhanced customer loyalty, and fostered new relationships – a new generation of shoppers who perhaps hadn’t been in before. “We’re still doing deliveries. Not to the same extent, but we will continue to support loical people, and we feel ingrained in the community. We even support local schools and charities with prizes, local food banks, and we sponsor events. It’s so important to us!”

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