About us

About us

Our History

Some businesses are built. Ours was grown, one generation at a time.

The story of D&F McCarthy begins in 1877, when Thomas McCarthy left County Cork, Ireland and set up a fruit stall from a barrow on London's Drury Lane. It was a modest start, but it planted the seed of something lasting.

 Following family summer holidays to the Norfolk coast, Thomas's son Daniel saw opportunity in Great Yarmouth and opened a market stall there in 1903. When the First World War called Daniel to serve with the Royal Navy, where he was wounded in the Dardanelles campaign aboard HMS Triumph, his young son Daniel junior left school at just 12 years old to help his mother keep the stall going. That determination never left the family.

 Father and son reunited after the war and steadily grew the business from a market stall into a wholesale operation. On 5th May 1939, just four months before the outbreak of the Second World War, D&F (Daniel and Frances) McCarthy was formally incorporated as a limited company. Even wartime couldn't stop them: when the warehouse was bombed and lorries were requisitioned in 1942, the business endured.

 The post-war years brought new momentum. In 1955, Daniel's son John stepped in after completing National Service, overseeing a move into a new Norwich warehouse at the Fruit Exchange and steadily expanding the company's reach across Norfolk. By the time John retired in 1995, he handed a thriving business to his four sons, Martin, Simon, David and Peter, who continue to lead it today.

 In 2009, a sixth generation joined the firm when Thomas's great-great-great-grandson Daniel came on board, followed by Sam and Annabel. Today, Sam serves as Managing Director, carrying the family legacy forward with the same values that have guided every generation before him.

Operating from a state-of-the-art facility on Broadland Business Park in Norwich, we remain what we've always been: a family business, proud of where we came from, and focused on delivering the freshest fruit and vegetables to our customers, just as Thomas McCarthy intended, over 145 years ago.

Our History

 

Some businesses are built. Ours was grown, one generation at a time.

 

The story of D&F McCarthy begins in 1877, when Thomas McCarthy left County Cork, Ireland and set up a fruit stall from a barrow on London's Drury Lane. It was a modest start, but it planted the seed of something lasting.

 

 Following family summer holidays to the Norfolk coast, Thomas's son Daniel saw opportunity in Great Yarmouth and opened a market stall there in 1903. When the First World War called Daniel to serve with the Royal Navy, where he was wounded in the Dardanelles campaign aboard HMS Triumph, his young son Daniel junior left school at just 12 years old to help his mother keep the stall going. That determination never left the family.

 

 Father and son reunited after the war and steadily grew the business from a market stall into a wholesale operation. On 5th May 1939, just four months before the outbreak of the Second World War, D&F (Daniel and Frances) McCarthy was formally incorporated as a limited company. Even wartime couldn't stop them: when the warehouse was bombed and lorries were requisitioned in 1942, the business endured.

 

 The post-war years brought new momentum. In 1955, Daniel's son John stepped in after completing National Service, overseeing a move into a new Norwich warehouse at the Fruit Exchange and steadily expanding the company's reach across Norfolk. By the time John retired in 1995, he handed a thriving business to his four sons, Martin, Simon, David and Peter, who continue to lead it today.

 

 In 2009, a sixth generation joined the firm when Thomas's great-great-great-grandson Daniel came on board, followed by Sam and Annabel. Today, Sam serves as Managing Director, carrying the family legacy forward with the same values that have guided every generation before him.

 

Operating from a state-of-the-art facility on Broadland Business Park in Norwich, we remain what we've always been: a family business, proud of where we came from, and focused on delivering the freshest fruit and vegetables to our customers, just as Thomas McCarthy intended, over 145 years ago.

  • 1877McCarthys sets its roots

    Thomas McCarthy runs a fruit stall from a barrow in Drury Lane, London after leaving County Cork, Ireland.

  • 1903An East Anglian boy

    Daniel Thomas (Thomas’s son) moves to Great Yarmouth and opens up a fruit stall in the market place.

  • 1914Triumphant

    Daniel joins the Royal Navy in WW1 eventually being wounded in the Dardanelles campaign whilst serving aboard HMS Triumph. His son Daniel junior leaves school in 1916 aged 12 to help his mother run the market stall.

  • 1933The whole sale

    Daniel and his mother move into wholesaling.

  • 1939Incorporated

    On 5th May, just 4 months before the outbreak of WW2 D & F (Daniel & Frances) McCarthy becomes a limited company

  • 1942War strikes

    The Warehouse is bombed and many of the lorries are requisitioned.

  • 1946Go Bananas

    First arrival of bananas since 1939. Priority is given to young school children many of whom have never before seen a banana.

  • 1955Generation 4

    Daniel’s son John finishes National Service and takes over the management of the company

  • 1965The Norwich Fruit Exchange

    The company moved from small rented premises in Heigham Street into a new warehouse at Raynham Street, The Norwich Fruit Exchange.

  • 1977Centurions

    The company celebrates its centenary.

  • 1995Generation 5

    John retires and hands over the running of the company to his four sons: Martin, Simon, David, and Peter.

  • 2010New Premises

    The company moves into its current facility on Broadland Business Park after 7 years of planning and searching for a suitable site

  • 2022Generation 6

    In 2009, generation six joined the firm with Thomas's great-great-great-grandson Daniel, followed by Sam and Annabel. Sam succeeded Martin as MD following his retirement in 2022.
1877

Established

6

Generations

149

Years and counting