'I lost IVF hope then my job - I used my last £200 for business that saved me'

09 August 2023 , 08:31

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Bini Ludlow will appear on Channel 4’s new documentary, A Cotswold Farmshop (Image: Clint Randall)

After three rounds of failed IVF and finally being told you can't have children is a life-changing moment for anyone. Bini Ludlow's life came crumbling down when her IVF journey came to an end.

At the same time, she also lost her job as a secondary school teacher. Despite having just £200 left in her bank, Bini knew she "had to do something" and decided to open a cooking school and a ready meals company.

"My husband Richard and I had three unsuccessful rounds of IVF and we had come to the end, it got to the point where my body couldn’t take anymore and it emotionally got too much," says Bini. "Everything became very stressful, my job, the IVF and we ran out of money, we had just £200 left in the bank. I turned around to Richard and said, 'I have to do something'."

Bini Fine Foods has won 13 awards since it launched a decade ago (Clint Randall)

Bini adds: "My friends and family kept saying, ‘your food is amazing, you could open a cooking school’, and that amazing idea became the start of my cookery school, Sweet Cumin. But getting people into rural Somerset for the lessons was a difficult task. I soon joined a women’s networking group who helped get people signed-up. Alongside Sweet Cumin I was started making ready meals in my kitchen, called Bini Fine Foods."

Bini first stepped into the kitchen at the age of eight, where she was surrounded by her mother and aunts cooking Gujarati food. Over the years she picked up skills and started putting recipes together. After 15 years of teaching Bini decided to spent some time in India with her family, where she explored the rich food scene. She quickly learnt that food brings family together.

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Bini, 49, from Somerset added: "Like any good Indian mother, my mother told me, ‘you have to learn to cook if you want to get married’. I learnt by watching my mother and aunts, they would love cooking together and gossiping in the kitchen. My mother worked in a factory with ladies from India, Pakistan and African and at lunchtime she said they would all share recipes and tips and tricks on which spices and herbs to use."

Bini's mother and cousin sister cooking Gujarati food

But when the Covid pandemic hit, Sweet Cumin came to an end, and instead the ready meal side of the business took over and award-winning Bini Fine Foods became a huge hit. There are 11 curries on offer from Green Bean Potato & Curry, Black Chickpea Curry, and the latest one, Dhaba Goat Curry. The recipe was inspired by Bini’s trip to Chamba in India in 2008, when the driver stopped off at his favourite Dhaba, which means roadside restaurant in India and Pakistan. It was here she ate a similar dish which inspired her to develop her own recipe.

Since then Bini has won several awards including 13 Great Taste Awards. She was shortlisted for the Delicious Magazine Produce Awards 2016 and even served her food to the Royals. "I met Prince Edward and the then Duchess of Wessex at the opening of Thatcher’s Cider at the Somerset site. I cooked my dishes which matched up with Thatcher’s Cider. I was so happy they were enjoying my dishes", says Bini.

Bini is now appearing on Channel 4’s new documentary, A Cotswold Farmshop, which will take a look behind the scenes at what makes the family-run Gloucester Services Farmshop & Kitchen on the M5 so popular. The documentary will shine a light on the stories of the people and produce. Bini will appear in episode 3 on Monday, August 21 at 8pm.

Bini Fine Foods has 11 curries on offer

Bini adds: "It was at an award ceremony many years ago where I met the owners of Gloucester Services Farmshop & Kitchen. I later emailed the head buyer Alexander to see if they would like to stock my range. I met the regional buyer Nicky Wildin and Alex at the services, and they loved my dishes.

"However, I was sent a questionnaire which detailed their high standards, to be able to stock in their farm shop. I couldn’t cook from home anymore but that didn’t stop me pursuing my dream of stocking in their amazing farm shop. After finding a unit just 2.5 miles away, I put the procedures in place, found the staff, suppliers and passed the EHO standards. I invited the buyers to come along and see what I had achieved.

"They took a tiny first order to test the market. I now sell to all sites from Gloucester Services, to Tebay Services and Cairne Lodge services. How amazing is that? I have grown the range and they have continued to stock more of my products. They now sell all 11 lines."

Channel 4’s new six-part documentary, A Cotswold Farmshop, airs every Monday at 8pm.

Maryam Qaiser