After 40 years of printing in the market town of Hawes in the Yorkshire Dales, Wensleydale Press owner Liz Lawson has decided to retire.

Lawson has been running the company with her stepson Nigel since the death of her husband Ken more than a decade ago. 

“If I was younger I wouldn’t be selling up, but we’re both getting on,” she said. “It’s time to start looking for someone to take over. I hope to be able to pass it on as a going concern, to someone who will carry on the printing business.”

The Wensleydale Press operates from a two-storey freehold building that was previously a stable, and the £475,000 price tag includes the adjacent three-bedroomed end of terrace house.

The print setup includes litho up to SRA3, digital and wide-format printing. The company produces a range of jobbing print work for local clients, as well as architectural plans and canvas prints on its wide-format printer. It had sales of nearly £74,000 last year.

“I’m hoping a person from the south could sell their house and still have change left over to buy this and have a nice way of life!” Lawson quipped.

“We’ll never be millionaires here, but it is a beautiful place to be with very good customers,” she added. “We look out over green fields and everyone knows each other, it is a real community.”

The business and house, which could be sold separately, are for sale with EMF Group.

Hawes is located 249m above sea level and lays claim to being the highest market town in England. Its market dates back to 1307.