The owner of the much-loved Pittenweem Preserves has described her shock cancer diagnosis which forced her to mothball her company for six months.
Fiona Audsley was diagnosed with stage four head and neck cancer earlier this year.
The 56-year-old makes jams, chutneys and vinegars from her “jam shack” in the back garden and has sold them with her husband Michael since 2018.
And after a tumultuous few months, the pair are preparing to uproot the firm to a new cottage.
But despite the setbacks, Fiona said she is raring to back to business after receiving the all-clear.
Pittenweem Preserves is open for business
Fiona and Michael decided to put the breaks on their business after she found out the seriousness of her disease.
She went through brutal rounds of treatment, the side effects of which left her with an altered sense of taste and other difficulties brought-on by radiotherapy.
The husband and wife team decided their brand would need to be mothballed so Fiona could recover as quickly as possible. But it was not without difficulties.
“We are self-employed, of course. And we until the start of the year, had been supplying National Trust venues with our jam. At least 19 of them.
“Because we had closed, we missed the chance to renew our contracts with the Trust. I’m confident we will win them back, but it has had an impact.
“Deciding to mothball the company was heart-breaking. But it was really the only option we had”.
And Fiona said her customers had worried about “overloading” her with orders over fears for her health.
“Our customers are fantastic. And their response to us getting back to making jam has been phenomenal. I can’t thank them enough for their support.
“They have been amazed at how many orders I am taking, and had been worried at first I would be overwhelmed.
“But I say, bring on the orders!”
Jam making classes to launch
Moving house might be an added stress for Fiona and Michael, but the couple are taking full advantage of their new digs.
“Our new cottage will have parking for customers, which means we can launch our new jam and preserve making classes.
“People will be able to come to the jam shack and make their own home-made preserves. It will be a fun day out.
“We are the only maker in the UK that uses 100% fruit sugar in the production of our jams.”
All of the details when the classes will be taking place are available on the Pittenweem Preserves website.
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