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From goats’ cheese to community hub: how Goat Shed turned a crisis into growth
When wholesale markets closed overnight, one Norfolk farm business pivoted quickly - building a direct-to-consumer model that continues to drive growth and diversification.
Read time: 2 mins Added: 10/06/26
Starting small and building steadily
Sam and Caroline Steggles started Goat Shed in 2009 with just 10 goats and a rented dairy unit.
With limited capital, they built the business step by step — producing cheese for local markets and gradually expanding the herd and product range. Investment in skills and equipment helped them grow, with their cheeses later winning national awards.
When the market disappeared overnight
By early 2020, Goat Shed was supplying airlines, delis and supermarkets, alongside generating income from holiday lets and courses. But when the pandemic struck, those wholesale markets closed quickly — leaving the business exposed.
Sam Steggles Goat ShedIn the space of about 24 hours, I’d lost 90% of our cheesemaking business. We had milk coming in, but nowhere to sell it.
With little time to react, Sam turned an honesty-box shed on the farm into a local shop.
Stocking cheese, eggs and essentials from nearby producers, the offer quickly expanded as demand grew. The set-up scaled from a shed to a barn, with customers travelling from across the area.
Turning a short-term fix into long-term growth
Sam assumed the shop would close when pandemic restrictions lifted, but customers kept returning. Expansion was needed and with support from Lloyds, the temporary solution transformed into a purpose-built farm shop, followed by the Goat Shed Kitchen, which now seats up to 120 inside and more than 100 outside.
More recent investment includes expanding the deli, adding a production kitchen and building a full butchery, while residential experiences offer cheese and sausage making courses on-site.
Around 80% of suppliers are local — strengthening links with other rural businesses.
Building resilience through diversification
The experience changed how Sam approaches risk and resilience.
Sam Steggles Goat ShedWhen Covid hit, I couldn’t pay the bills, and I was determined we’d never be in that position again. Now, with our cheeses made just 17 metres from the shop, we can offer customers a true field-to-fork experience.
The business continues to diversify, with a growing beef herd, meat goats for the butchery and two broiler breeder units adding another income stream. In addition, solar panels help buildings share power more efficiently, with surplus exported to the grid in summer.
Sam says access to the right support has been vital behind each phase of growth.
“Without the input from Victoria, our relationship manager at Lloyds, and the bank’s support, there is no way we would have done what we’ve done.”
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