By Simon Haslam
The concept of the Australian general store is an old one, dating back to the time when our population was smaller, and transportation much more difficult. The whole town and surrounding area would purchase their food staples, dry goods and sometimes basic home and hardware from the general store. Or, in a city suburb, an ordinary house would convert its front rooms to sell the basics that everyone could walk down the shops for.
There’s a lot of love in Australia for general stores: they were often a meeting place where you could connect with the neighbours, they’re much more enjoyable to visit than a brightly-lit supermarket chain with their copy-cat goods, and often their owners are a welcome part of the community. Plus, you can grab the essentials when you fill up with fuel.
Anthony (from Lismore) and Abbie (Ewingsdale) are both locals who went to primary and high school in the area, who took a bit of a gamble when, with a newborn, they left careers as a builder and a vet to take over Bangalow’s General Store two years ago.
‘We still get people coming in saying, “When did this happen?”,’ laughs Anthony. ‘It’s Bangalow’s best-kept secret. People just love the idea of the general store, and I think they also appreciate what we’re trying to do to support the real, grass roots economy of the area.’
‘Our focus is on supplying the community with local products, to help support the local economy and food chain and to help smaller businesses to get their products into the community. This reduces food miles and our customers know directly where the products come from.’
Bangalow General Store is just off the main street on Granuaille Rd, so it’s easy to stop when you’re heading through Bangalow, but it’s also easy to access by foot or on your bike if you live in town. Whether you’re after local meat, seafood, coffee, healthy snacks, or local handcrafts such as ceramics, roast macadamia honeycomb butter, artisan bread, delicious cheeses, flowers, gluten-free fresh pasta or sauces, oysters, salmon…
You get the picture – the general store’s the place!
Bangalow General Store
Open 6am–6pm Mon to Sat, 7am–5pm Sun
Open for fuel 24 hours (card only)
