Celebrity chef Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall is gearing up to take on his local Tesco when he opens a small grocery store in the Devon town of Axminster in three weeks time.
Tesco is currently the only major food retailer in the town. Fearnley-Whittingstall, who is an outspoken critic of the distance food travels to get into shops, and of the destructive influence of big supermarkets on the high street, is hoping that consumers will be tempted by the lure of local produce available in his River Cottage-branded convenience store.
If successful, the concept could be rolled out across other parts of the UK.