AN AUSTRALIAN couple are celebrating five years of running their successful coffee shop chain, with two of the stores in Oxfordshire.

Kats and Rob Broadbent initially moved to the UK in 2012, but returned in 2014.

The pair opened the first Lynwood & Co cafe in Lechlade, Gloucestershire five years ago.

Another store opened in Fairford, also in Gloucestershire, in 2017.

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In July 2018, the duo decided to make the move into West Oxfordshire as they opened a store in Burford.

Mrs Broadbent, 47, said: “We initially lived here for a year and being Australian we’re passionate about coffee but couldn’t get a good coffee anywhere.

“A site came up in Lechlade and we gave it a go, concentrating on really good standards of coffee.

“There was a gap for a small, independent, personalised coffee shop in the Cotswolds.

Oxford Mail:

“We’re trying to give the local communities a laid back environment with a great coffee too.

“People come into the shops and we know their names and build that personal relationship, and know what people want, whether it be a latte or a flat white.

“We didn’t know how it would go at the beginning, but it was pretty successful so we decided to open the second shop in Fairford.

“It’s nice to offer something different to what the high street offers.”

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The couple met in Sydney in 1998, whilst Mr Broadbent, 52, was working in the restaurant industry.

They have now been married 18 years and have two children.

Mr Broadbent’s mum owned a cafe with the same name in Sydney, which Mrs Broadbent described as a ‘beautiful old building’.

In the here and now, the shops offer not just coffee but also a range of food, including a brunch menu and homemade cakes.

Oxford Mail:

All food is made at a production kitchen in Hatherop, Gloucestershire, with organic sourdough made daily.

As the chain has grown, so has its staff, with Lynwood & Co now employing 40 staff, most of whom are full time.

The couple’s most recent venture saw them open a shop in Carterton last August.

Mrs Broadbent said: “With the most recent store, there’s lots of families in Carterton so we thought it was a great opportunity to set up somewhere young families could go to.”

Mrs Broadbent said the store in Lechlade has recently been ‘refreshed’ following its five years of trade.

As they celebrate the fifth anniversary of their first store, the couple said they are aiming to open between two and four more stores in the next couple of years.