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Photograph by Chad Pilster
Little Shop of Haggis: British Food Centre proprietor Bill Fredlund leans over a display of meat pies.
English Atmosphere
Campbell's British Food Centre has a taste of home away from home for expatriate Brits
By Michele Leung
The British Food Centre doesn't boast all the amenities of modern-day supermarkets. It doesn't offer savings cards, there's no ATM inside, and it only has one cash register.
But the shop, at 1800 W. Campbell Ave., does carry a wide selection of delicacies and hard-to-find British comestibles, such as smoked fish, haggis and meat pies. In the British Food Centre, Campbell has a minuscule but thriving piece of Great Britain.
At the helm of this enterprise is Bill Fredlund, a retired U.S. Air Force colonel, his British-born wife, Betty, and their son, Bill Jr.
The Centre's predecessor was a British-American antique store, located in the same building and also run by Fredlund. After several years, the former jet fighter pilot soon found himself in the special-order business.
"People were asking me, 'Can you get me a box of this or that?'" he says, referring to specific food items.
Fredlund heard this line often enough that he changed product lines. Three stores and nearly 20 years later, he has found himself a unique niche.
Today, the 18-year-old Campbell store is the headquarters, with additional stores in San Carlos and Solano Beach. The Campbell store boasts more than 2,500 imported items, and ships anywhere in the United States. Perishables are packed with dry ice in boxes cut to fit. Meat items, however, aren't imported because of USDA regulations, but come from Cameron's British Food, a Florida-based company that makes frozen meat products.
According to Fredlund, the most popular items include candy, cookies and meat pies.
"Our biscuits [cookies] are better than those in American stores. We don't say that. Our customers tell us that," says employee Mabel Bartholomew.
But the Centre is more than just food. Fredlund and Betty travel to England twice a year to stock up on unusual gifts.
"We primarily sell food, but if you sell tea, why not sell a cup and saucer?" he says. The inventory also includes "tea cozies"--jackets for teakettles; "eggs on legs"--cups to hold boiled eggs; and soccer team paraphernalia.
Fredlund credits the success of his store to the fierce loyalty of his customers. He likes to tell about the fellow who saw a car with a GB sticker in front of him at a stop sign. "He just got out and threw our business card to him."
Then there's the woman in Miami who has been a long-time mail-order customer. "She called her sister in Cupertino and said, 'Do you know where Campbell is?' The sister didn't know we existed."
The rapport the staff has with the customers makes it evident they're a close bunch. "The customers like to talk to the checkout girls, and they know everyone by name," Fredlund said.
Indeed, the cash register doubles as a central information hub, where customers and employees get caught up and share stories.
"Have you seen Joan recently?" asks one.
"I know she came back from England, but I haven't heard from her," replies the other.
"My favorite part of working here is meeting everybody and the fun of talking," says employee Sheena Baghoomian. "We all know each other and talk about our lives. It really is like a corner shop."
With the holidays around the corner, corner shop or not, any food establishment expects to have more business during this time. Although Thanksgiving is the unofficial start of the American eating season, for the majority of the Brits, Turkey Day comes and goes with nary a peep. But with enough exposure, they eventually join in on the gastronomical activities.
"Last year was our first year here, and we didn't do anything. [Thanksgiving's] not celebrated in England," says Christine Chattaway.
"However, we might do something this year," adds her husband, Alec. "It seems like a good idea."
"I'm not sure that most [celebrate Thanksgiving], since it's so close to Christmas. For a long time, I didn't do Thanksgiving," says Baghoomian, who has been in the States for 20 years. "But then I did because the children are grown and Americanized."
For the British, Christmas is the bigger deal, but Fredlund is ready. Special holiday items, such as sweets and puddings, have been ordered for traditional English Christmas dishes.
The holidays can be a forlorn time for those without family nearby, but lonely expatriates have found a way to cure the Yuletide blues. "If they're homesick during the holidays, they just come here to the store and then they can talk to someone from their country," says Fredlund.
With each passing year, the business has grown, much to Fredlund's delight. "What amazed me and my wife is the amount of Brits in California--500,000," he says.
It's a good bet many of them have been to his corner shop, where they can be reminded of home.
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Campbell, California
