Lucky Lisa Payne from Kedington was delighted to win £100 to spend with a local independent business during a recent Buy Local campaign in the town. 

Lisa, who works in Bury St Edmunds, secured her prize by completing a review card for the Raj Mahal Indian Restaurant in Haverhill.  Her review was entered into a daily prize draw to win £100 to spend with a local business. There were five daily prizes of £100 for each day of the week long national campaign which was organised by the bestof and supported by thebestof Haverhill.

Lisa’s winning review, which awarded the Raj Mahal the maximum five stars, stated, “The service from the waiters was fantastic. The food was amazing along with great company.”   Lisa, a regular visitor to the restaurant, comments, “I particularly enjoy going to the Raj Mahal with a group of friends for the Tuesday night specials, they are such excellent value for money. I find the service is always really nice from the waiters.  I never win anything so I’m delighted to have picked up the prize.  I am going to spend the money with Kedington Butchers and stock up my freezer with some of their lovely meat.” 

The Raj Mahal have been members of bestof Haverhill since September 2013 and have already received over 430 reviews praising the quality of the food and the service.  They were the 3rd Most Loved Business in Haverhill in the Local and Loved campaign run by bestof Haverhill in February this year and were in the Top 100 Most Loved Businesses in the UK.

The bestof Buy Local campaign took place during the first week of June and encouraged people across the country to consider where they were spending their money and promoted the benefits of buying locally.  People were asked to pledge their support to the campaign by completing a review for a local business.  Elaine Carr owner of bestof Haverhill spent a day on the market promoting the campaign by giving out Buy Local bags, Buy Local stickers and flyers containing offers from bestof Haverhill business members.

 Elaine comments, “I am so pleased that we had a Buy Local winner in Haverhill.  It is good to see local people being rewarded for supporting our local economy.  I think it is also great that Lisa has chosen to spend her money with Kedington Butchers.  They are a true local business, using local suppliers where ever possible.  There is no question about the provenance or quality of their meat and then there’s the banter – just what you would expect from a village butcher, a real tonic!”

Buy Local lies at the heart of the bestof brand and is an ongoing campaign with local people still able to pledge their support for local companies by going to www.thebestof.co.uk/haverhill

Image courtesy of David Doughty, The Gallery

Left to right: Ronnie from Raj Mahal; Lisa Payne, Buy Local Winner; Paul Morris, Kedington Butchers; Elaine Carr, bestof Haverhill