Deben Valley Drive

Deben Valley Drive: This was named after the business at 1 and 3 Dobbs Lane and was run by my family (Mr Bugg) together with three assistants and a Mobile Vehicle. We arrived in Kesgrave on Good Friday 1947 only to find that the previous owner had misread the agreement. Our furniture was unloaded into the garden and tilted over until later in the day a removal lorry was organised to allow us entry to our new home. At that time the shop consisted of two units with a small access between. Father’s aim was to knock the two units into one. By 1950 this had been achieved and a typical Village Store had been established. Any item that was asked for was then stocked and in recent years it could only be related to “Open All Hours”. Unfortunately round about 1959 Mum had a stroke and Dad suffered from a breakdown. Thus Deben Valley was placed on the market. We had been caught up financially with bulk buying to combat the growth of the Super Markets. Thus the business was sold and taken over by an investor who then installed a manager. The family spirit was quickly lost and with succeeding managers and owners we now see Domino Pizza and Threshers Wine on the
site.