After working in a village butcher's shop for 45 years, Philip Dowe certainly knows how to bring home the bacon.

Mr Dowe and his wife Francesca are the owners of Chapman's Butchers in Martham, near Great Yarmouth.

Mr Dowe took on the store in 1996 having worked there previously. He had started there as a 14-year-old butcher's boy under its previous owner George Chapman.

But now the couple are preparing to hang up their aprons for the last time after putting the premises and its accompanying four-bedroom house on the market.

Mr Dowe, 59, explained how he got involved in running the shop, which prides itself on its strong customer service.

He said: "I was 14 and went into the Chapman's with my mum and said to my mum I liked the smell of it, of the shop. She then enquired about jobs there.

"If I didn't have a sense of smell I don't know where I would be now."

Mr Dowe bought the shop from George Chapman in 1996 and carried on with its traditional village store ethos that appeals to its many loyal customers.

In an average week he sells 150lbs of sausages and says people's tastes have not changed too much over the years, except for seasonings and flavourings.

He says the key to the shop's success is staying open six days a week and never closing unexpectedly for the odd day.

Mr Dowe added: "People still like old-style traditional butchers. The thing is to keep it just right for customers to keep it busy."

Looking to the future he said: "We have had a good run and it is time to take a step back from it. There will be a little bit of mixed feelings when we leave, but nothing lasts forever."

Mr and Mrs Dowe, who hope to move elsewhere in Martham, wanted to thank all their customers and suppliers.

Mrs Dowe, 56, added: "We have been very lucky with all of our customers. Some of them were children when they first came in."

When asked what type of meat is their favourite, the couple said ribeye steak always hit the spot.

Chapman's Butchers, which is based on the Green and has its own smokehouse, is being marketed for £695,000 by East Commercial Chartered Surveyors.