Our History
Fay and Bob Hayne took over Graingers 25 years ago. At that time it was a successful main street fruit and veg shop in Dorchester town centre, trading well as independent retailers did in the early ‘80s. They started supplying a handful of local pubs and they soon realised that as supermarkets began to swallow up traditional retail trade, maybe their future lay in expanding the Trade aspect and before long they ceased their retail operation altogether.

It was while they still traded from their South Street shop that Fay and Bob hit on the idea of actually preparing fruit and vegetables ready for cooking and eating, and they started doing this in the cellar. Little did they know how popular this would prove and it was the beginning of what has become a very big business success.

Bigger and more practical premises were soon essential so they moved to their present base at Dorchester’s Marabout Industrial Estate where subsequently they have expanded into four totally dedicated warehouses, each devoted to various aspects of the food preparation business. Over 20 staff are employed and the Company has a fleet of nine delivery vans plus a lorry that collects wholesale supplies from various markets.

Last year Fay and Bob’s son-in-law Stan came into the business full time, closely followed by his wife Giselle. It is good to see Stan and Giselle following in the family’s footsteps.