Meet the member:
The Oak Tree Anstruther

We had just relocated back home to Fife after running a bed and breakfast, gift shop and tea room in the Scottish Highlands and were looking for an ideal location that suited our handcrafted oak furniture and gifts that Geoff makes and combining the shop with my passion for excellent quality and locally sourced foods.

We fell in love with Anstruther’s seaside location, which has some magical appeal with the sound of waves and fresh ocean air – it was perfect for a woodworking & artisan food shop.
The challenge becomes not getting too distracted by the view!

Walking through The Oak Tree door you will be warmly welcomed to browse our handcrafted wooden gifts made by Geoff and shelves packed full of colourful artisan foods, rich in provenance and full of flavour.
Every corner of The Oak Tree has a different delectable treat. We are always there to share the stories behind each piece or recommend which chutney goes with what oatcake.
You’ll find carefully selected foods that tell the story of Fife’s coast and
hopefully everyone leaves feeling they have discovered something that
connects them to this particular corner of Fife.

First of all it’s all about quality and flavour, looking for products that reflect the East Neuk, Fife and Scotland from small independent artisan producers. Provenance is key! We also look further afield for anything we can’t source locally and products that enhance our local listings.

The foods that stand out are the ones where customers can hear where and how they are made, this combined with quality make our preserves, honey, condiments, fruit and cordials even more special.

Our local range is constantly evolving and currently includes Pittenweem Preserves and Cocoa Tree’s amazing hot chocolate – both of which are made just down the road. There’s also Your Piece Shortbread and Growers Garden Broccoli Crisps to name but a few. One of our latest products is the East Neuk honey from the nearby hives, it’s packed full of flavour from all the fields, trees and plants in the East Neuk and has become very popular.

We would love to add a chilled area to supply local cheese and dairy, it would make a fantastic expansion to complement our existing concept and would complete the Fife experience for customers.  We would love to hear from any local suppliers who have something interesting to show us -just drop us a line!

We talk to customers about the ethical stories behind our handmade wooden gifts. All the wood we use is recycled, whether it’s from fallen trees or retired whisky barrels – Geoff will come home with a log over his shoulder most days.
All the shelving in The Oak Tree is made from recycled scaffolding boards and metal scaffolding poles and the centre display stand is an old oak tree – bark and all.
We recycle as much as possible and use recycled paper bags for gifts and food purchases. Our display stands and sign boards are made from recycled wood too.
We also collect our orders from local suppliers and return the cardboard boxes as much as possible.

We are a busy tourism town and we have a really diverse customer mix.
Our locals appreciate the community connection and supporting local suppliers, they can be the word of mouth marketing team.
The tourists and day trippers seek out authentic local experiences they can’t get at home and products that tell a story about the place they are visiting.

Visitors are genuinely excited to find local unique foods as they offer something they can’t find at home and that their friends back home have never heard of, it feels like uncovering a secret.

Local foods taste like where they are from and every local food has a story which visitors love to hear, making their purchase a meaningful memory of the East Neuk.

The hotter the hot sauce the better!!!
Chilli is everything just now and it was great to find Jen at Chilli bird.
With food lovers craving hot honey, hot pickles and hot sauces, we are keeping our eye on new sauces out there.

The cost of living crisis and energy costs have all played a major part in businesses which has led us to ensure The Oak Tree is always stocked with produce for every budget and we try to keep cost down the best we can.

We are always making changes and keeping up with new foods, trends and suppliers. We find social media is great at showing new food trends and browsing through food magazines is my type of reading.
Geoff is always coming up with new ideas in The Oak Tree Workshop and getting ready for doing the Balgove Christmas market.

How The Oak Tree has evolved over the years with new wooden gifts and foods, the best part is finding new suppliers and talking to customers about the new products.

The community support makes such a difference from both a consumer and business perspective. Local producers look out for each other, share tips about new producers, and are generally really supportive.
The new Food from Fife POS has been really helpful in highlighting our local range – the ‘support local’ message is so important. Consumers, whether they’re local or visiting, love to support local. I also love having time to chat and catch up with our regulars – they’re our greatest ambassadors. Being part of the community is all about working together for the good of local businesses and local people.

It’s got to be Anstruther’s award-winning fish and chips followed by an ice-cream at Scoop Ice-cream parlour or on a special occasion The Boars Head in Auchtermuchty is outstanding.