Couple ditch quiet retirement for cider business

A couple who decided to open a cider business instead of having a quiet retirement say they are facing huge demand at their countryside venue.

Former stonemason Tom Vowles, 59, and ex-nurse Jo Vowles, 51, opened Hedgers Cider in July 2023.

They decided to work together on the project to have a better quality of life.

Ms Vowles, from Redhill, in North Somerset, said they had gone quickly from worrying they would not sell enough to "not being sure if we have enough to sell".

"I started working in a care home at 16 looking after the elderly and then worked as a nurse up into my 50s," said Ms Vowles.

"Through lockdown I carried on working as a district nurse. I saw the isolation.

"When I started out, I'd have eight patients and spend an hour with them, but by the end of my career I was seeing maybe up to 22 to 25 people. It just felt wrong."

It was at this time when her partner inherited farmland from his late father and presented the idea of them making cider for their retirement.

"I thought it was something I would join in with in the next five years, but things dramatically changed and I quickly realised we would need to work together," Ms Vowles said.

Mr Vowles, who had been a stonemason for 30 years, started planting his apple trees in 2017.

"I've now got an old cider press that belonged to Coate's Cider in Nailsea," he said.

"Everything has been washed down, cleaned and sterilised. Even though we use the old methods, it's good clean cider."

The couple offer food and live music at weekends at their base, on the edge of the Mendip Hills.

"It has a nice community feel and it's gone really well," added Mr Vowles.

His partner said she got a "buzz" from watching people enjoy the music.

"I never imagined I'd be doing this when I was a nurse. It's been the best decision," Ms Vowles added.

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