Freetown Yankee Market first opened its doors in 1979 by Dave Lafayette. In 2001 it was purchased by Tom & Jeanann (JR) Jacobs shortly after their move to Nottingham. At that time, the store was primarily a butcher shop and deli with some convenience items available. Dave had built a strong business with the family meat packs and those continue, still, to grow in sales every month.
Tom & JR’s vision was to offer the local community a place to buy high quality products at a value price, and offer
ready-to-eat meal options for the busy family that didn’t want to exist on fast food.
The Certified Angus Beef brand was a DEFINITE keeper. The success of the business had been steadily built on the reliability of its high quality. JR & Tom were learning a lot about beef - - -they LITERALLY “went to school” to learn about their product. Studying at the University of Nebraska’s School of Animal Husbandry they cut, measured marbling and fat, and learned about what made this CAB brand so consistently special. (Only 8% of all beef raised for consumption qualifies as Certified Angus Beef)
Their studies extended beyond the confines of formal education. Tom, personally taste-tested every type of pizza Northern Italy had to offer. JR took cooking lessons in Tuscany, and they sampled everything to insure it’s quality was worthy of their customers. They left no stone unturned - - - - no amount of research was too much for their valued customer base.
They researched and researched-- traveling to the vineyards of the wineries represented in their store regardless of whether it was in
Sonoma Valley or Montepulciano!
One of the first product decisions made was to carry bulk spices from Frontier. Ever wonder why those $5.00 jar of spices don’t have any flavor? Because they should be bought in small quantities and used within 3 months! Our Frontier Spices continue to be one of the most pleasant surprises our customers encounter as they peruse Yankee.
Another product that quickly took off was the Yankee-made salads. Every salad is made from fresh ingredients,
in-house and contain no preservatives.
