A village butchers' shop in south Suffolk is celebrating its 15-year anniversary.

A. Leeder Butchers in Boxford, between Sudbury and Hadleigh, has been serving its local community since 2007.

Alan Leeder, owner of the shop, revealed his son was born in the week he first took on the business, which provides fresh cuts of meats sourced from across East Anglia.

He has seen his business go from strength to strength during his time serving the Boxford villagers.

Mr Leeder said: "I've been in butchery for 28 years, but I actually bought the shop this week 15 years ago.

"It's been a rollercoaster but it's been good.

"I took over the shop on May 1, 2007, and my son was born the following Sunday — it was quite stressful that week, I'm glad he was born on Sunday because I was right back in work on Monday.

"The idea of buying the shop and running it was one, to work for myself, and two, to be a pension for when I retire."

Mr Leeder revealed his secret to running a successful business is "hard work and dedication".

He said "there's only one way to do a proper job, and that's the proper way, not cutting corners," adding that you should also "try to make every customer feel special when they walk through the door."

Mr Leeder added: "I've had the same suppliers since the day I took over. I've never changed.

"The beef, pork, and lamb are from Burnham on Crouch, the chickens come from Bungay, and the cheese comes from Peterborough.

"All the condiments I sell come from Stoke's, I get local honey from a lady down the road and bread from Lavenham.

"A lot of stuff I sell is quite local."

Mr Leeder added: "I think my biggest supporter is my wife.

"The number of hours I've worked over the last 15 years is probably more than most people have in 30. During the height of Covid, we were working 17-18 hour days. She puts up with my tiredness when I get home."