Fifty years of family-run stove expertise — from a single Jøtul brought home to a Wiltshire farmhouse in 1974, to the South West’s leading stove specialists today.
Dick and Mary Knight bought a Jøtul wood stove from Norway to heat their draughty farm house in 1974. At the time in England the concept of burning wood instead of coal was unheard of. They decided on the stove after seeing a leaflet which was written in Norwegian at the Royal Welsh show, where the family were showing their Hampshire Down sheep. The stove changed the feel of the house and made them enthuse to anyone and everyone as to how good the stove was.
The farmers weekly published an article in 1975 about a museum Dick had opened which at this time was unusual for farmers to have other ventures.
Reporters from the farmers weekly came to interview Dick and thawed out in front of the Jøtul stove. This then led to a picture in the magazine of Mary stoking the stove, explaining the efficiency compared to an open fire. This was the first wood stove article published in England. This picture led to a large number of enquiries (40 a day at its peak) and so they started supplying stoves to the public, despite the initial reluctance to go into retail.
More and more time was being spent selling stoves instead of farming and on the museum. The extra income meant the farm could be run traditionally without sprays and fertilizer to keep the fields as meadows with lots of wild flowers and the historical buildings could be left.
Gradually the business expanded and they started selling a couple of other leading manufacturers stoves, which are still sold today. Now 50 years on Dick’s son Henry runs the business, dealing with these established premier manufacturers and have the confidence that the products supplied will be a benefit to customers and give many years of reliable service.
More and more time was being spent selling stoves instead of farming and on the museum. The extra income meant the farm could be run traditionally without sprays and fertilizer to keep the fields as meadows with lots of wild flowers and the historical buildings could be left.
Gradually the business expanded and they started selling a couple of other leading manufacturers stoves, which are still sold today. Now 50 years on Dick’s son Henry runs the business, dealing with these established premier manufacturers and have the confidence that the products supplied will be a benefit to customers and give many years of reliable service.
Dick sadly passed away on the 20th of January 2024 at the age of 92. This was made more poignant as the company he founded in 1974 celebrated 50 years.
From one Norwegian stove in a farmhouse to over 100 stoves on live display.
Our showroom at Marshfield is the largest in the South West, stocking only the manufacturers we trust to serve customers for decades to come.
A few clippings and photographs from across our fifty years in the trade.
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