Marshall's Meats undoubtedly has a longstanding and successful history of offering Quality meat products and services in the small town of Winchester, Idaho. If you ask anyone who grew up around here, they can tell you their favorite Marshall's jerky flavor right away, as well as the stories of their hunting trophies that ended up at the shop and the ones that got away. That's one of the best things about having the shop.

The business began in 1968 under the name "Shadduck's Meats," named for its original owner. It was renamed after it was purchased by Floyd Marshall in 1977, who, along with his wife Diane, ran the shop for over two decades. Later, Mike and Cindy Pratt bought the business and ran it for another two decades until, in 2021, it found us, Tyler and Carrie Wiley. 

My family has deep roots in Winchester. Though I was raised in Alaska,  the twists and turns of life brought us back to them. In fact we just built our house less than a mile from where my family homesteaded in 1906. We're also not but a couple of miles from the ranch my grandparents built in the 70s, and I can remember visiting Floyd at Marshall's when I was a teen during my summer visits. It was my Grandpa who mentioned to us that the old shop was for sale. It took a while for us to come around to the idea that we might be the buyers. We had been looking for our own business opportunity for a while.

This wasn't it.

It is true, we did have a lot in common with the owners of the past.  We wanted a family business, and family had a long tradition of being involved in the shop's operations.  We loved being a part of a community, and the store had long been at the center of the community it belonged to. Like all the owners before, we loved the area and the lifestyle it offered. How could you not? It's God's country for sure. We had an entrepreneurial spirit, just like they did. The more we thought about it, the more we thought maybe this was just what we had been looking for after all! 

There was just one small problem, however, one thing that we did not have in common with any of the former owners: experience. We knew absolutely nothing about being butchers! (yes, really). My husband was a chef by trade. He was brilliant with all things food but could not have told you what section of the cow a T-Bone came from! I was a homemaker, still busy with the daily tasks of raising three boys in their teen years. I can assure you that the idea of a butcher shop being the business opportunity I thought we were searching for wasn't anywhere on my radar.

Until it was.

We were absolutely unqualified and unprepared in just about every way to take on this monstrous challenge. Butchering and processing whole carcass animals- completely foreign. Running a grocery store- ok, we can both run a cash register. Slaughtering- wait...what? Not to mention, we lived an hour away from Winchester. Oh boy.

As I type this, I have to laugh out loud. It's actually completely illogical that we chose to do this. The only explanation I have is this: There are times in our lives when all the loud voices in our heads are asking, "What if I fall?", a small voice pipes up and asks, "Oh, but darling, what if you fly?" That little voice could not be ignored by either of us. That's what happened, and so it was.

We told the former owners we wanted the business, but if they were going to sell it to us, they had to agree to teach us everything they knew from the ground up. Including what section the T-bone came from! With no other bidders at the table and having been for sale for 5 years, they agreed (although I'm certain they thought we were crazy). So there we were, brand new keys in hand to our very old butcher shop, wondering what in the world we had done.

We jumped in head first. I commuted back and forth, taking care of the house, kids, and their school. Tyler, putting in late nights, slept most of the time in the back of the shop on a cot. We took notes, watched YouTube videos, and endured long, seemingly endless days in what I can only describe as a butcher boot camp. By the grace of God, by the end of that first year, we were getting it! We had our sea legs under us. We were off and running...and growing, and having a lot of fun doing it! The community of Winchester and the surrounding area was and continues to be so supportive of us. They are yet another of my favorite reasons for doing what we do. Of course, we could not have experienced the growth we have without them, and we are so thankful for them. We have enjoyed our busy and bustling shop every single day. Our family has been in the shop every step of the way, learning and growing with us. If you asked me to pick just one favorite thing about this journey, that would be it. While working with family certainly has its challenges, I don't think there is anything more rewarding than when we share successes (and failures) together. We are a solid team, and watching that come to fruition has been one of the greatest joys of my life as a mother (and a butcher shop owner).

Unfortunately, owning a business is never all ups, and just before last Christmas, we had a major blow. The very old stovepipe in our smoker had an unseen hole that had been leaking fat into the space above, and a fire started. No one was hurt, but we did lose the building. I will never be able to put into words the fear that gripped me on that early 4 a.m. phone call from an employee telling me that the shop was on fire. All of our hard work....

That brings us to the here and now. As I write this, they are pouring concrete for the floor of the new shop. We are rebuilding! We know that with all the ways this could have gone, we are incredibly blessed to have this chance and do not intend to waste it. We have plans to bring Marshall's Meats back to life bigger, better, and full of new opportunities. By the time you read this, we will have opened our doors. Of course, it is never good for a business to be down. There's lots of unknowns, and don't think those old noisy voices aren't back in my head. "What if you fall?".  However, if this old butcher shop has taught me one thing, it's to listen to the voice that matters. The one that whispers, "Oh, but darling, what if you fly?".