This week’s Career Spotlight is Flora Phillips — butcher at Farmer Tom Jones and the force behind Floffal.
Working in one of hospitality’s most physically demanding and male-dominated trades, Flora speaks with rare honesty about confidence, doubt, strength and sensitivity — and how all of those coexist in her work. She is open about imposter syndrome, about physical limits in a job that demands lifting and endurance, and about the quiet frustration of not always being taken seriously. But she is equally clear about the value of patience, skill and quiet confidence — and the way mastery is built through repetition, care and attention rather than bravado.
Moving between whole-carcass butchery and Floffal’s offal-led cooking, writing and supper clubs, Flora’s career has been shaped by total immersion. Her work is rooted in deep respect for animals, food and process, and in the belief that kindness, communication and looking after one another are essential in environments that can otherwise be abrasive and exhausting. Whether she’s breaking down a carcass, cutting a steak by eye, or reframing how people think about offal, her approach is thoughtful, sensory and deeply human.
Taken together, Flora’s story offers a quietly radical perspective on what strength, craft and leadership can look like in hospitality — and why sensitivity and care are not weaknesses, but skills in their own right.
How did you get into your current role?
I heard via Instagram that Spa Terminus — and specifically Farmer Tom Jones — was hosting a trade open day. They made a point of saying that anyone was welcome, so I went along with a printed CV. The first person I met was Mike Davies, who I’d actually spoken to years earlier when I first started Floffal and was looking for kitchen experience somewhere that worked with whole-carcass butchery — The Camberwell Arms, which we now supply and work with anyway. I was invited in for a trial by Mike the day after the last butcher’s I worked at closed, which was pretty incredible timing.
To start Floffal back in 2023, I left my career in the art world and went to work in a butcher’s shop alongside another part-time job. Every spare day I had went into sourcing, cooking and learning about offal. I foraged — or rather scavenged — and I started to write seriously. I did a few stages at restaurants along the way, before gaining traction with supper clubs and being invited to cook alongside other chefs in different spaces.
It’s been an ongoing progression since then. What I do now is a really fulfilling balance between butchery and Floffal — there isn’t one without the other, I don’t think.
What’s been the hardest thing about your career journey so far, and how did you get through it?
The imposter syndrome. I'm not a competitive person and I don't like the idea that we're apparently all having to fight for space or defend our territories - food is about bringing people together and about sharing - but I do find myself often concerned about not being good enough or not being business-minded or driven enough.
With Floffal, I have so often been out of my comfort zone or throwing myself into entirely new situations or tasks - that is scary, stressful, and tiring. It also gets lonely, doing your own thing and having to instigate, innovate and motivate yourself all the time. You're always having conversations and 'strategy meetings' with yourself, but when you're exhausted or feeling low this can get overwhelming. But in this, you really meet yourself throughout your work - because your own love for it is the ultimate instigator - you can’t not do it - and you get through it by finding comfort and companionship in that. And, when someone just tells you your food is delicious, or every so often says that you've completely transformed their understanding of meat, and food. That's very encouraging.
With butchery, it's much the same. It's intense work. There is a certain culture surrounding it that I honestly am not naturally eased into. Customers can react weirdly sometimes. People don’t always take you seriously. It can be hard to be listened to. I have too many bizarre and uncomfortable stories to fit into this answer. I have really struggled at points believing that I'm able and accepted to be there. At least a few times a week, I have to state to my colleagues: 'I can't lift this’. I have a fundamental 'limit' in a job that demands a lot of lifting. Every so often it gets to me and I get frustrated and anxious - I'm a sensitive person - and I worry it would've been easier to hire someone stronger, or less 'sensitive'.
I think it's important to meet your insecurities head-on. Coming up against barriers or challenges makes you innovate and adapt more, and that is empowering. And I really try to listen and take in when my colleagues thank me, or really recognise me and do not judge me. I've been lucky in that sense. I think back to the days where I break down whole cows by myself, not needing any help, and not needing any particular praise, just doing the job well, without doubting myself. Or when a customer asks for a 300g steak and I cut 306g by eye, in less than a minute. A lot of it is a mindset. Butchery is about quiet confidence - your physical performance (i.e. your knife skills) relies on it.
What’s the realistic salary range for a role like yours?
I started on what is now below the minimum wage.. each job I've had I've asked for more, and I've managed it. Due to the nature of the work, it's commonly a per hour rate - I've seen £14/hr to £20/hr. When you get to management level there is a decent increase, but it will of course depend on whether you're working for a big company operation or an independent place. I know some career butchers - and those who go on to succeed through the qualifications and become a certified 'Master Butcher' can earn some serious money - 5 figures. The apprenticeship, and working up through those levels do come into play with salaries.
With Floffal, it changes all the time. I always aim to do a range of events, from private dinners, my own supper clubs, to chef residencies or collaborations - which fall into the hands of those establishments when it comes to money. I think you can be discerning about your work and worth, but it's certainly also about remaining accessible for as wide an audience as possible.
How has your earning potential changed over time?
It's just been a case of developing skill, knowledge and experience. Operating within a shop (or being responsible for one yourself, which I've dabbled in with regards to 'running' places), the more responsibility you can take on should inevitably equate to a higher earning. There is a lot of decision-making and onus, similar to any hospitality or retail setting, given health & safety factors that you have to constantly keep in check, and when it comes to training and managing staff. Many of these have come into play in terms of my earning potential - I like to think it's really on the up now - I'm excited to learn and develop more in terms of responsibility and really getting into the bones of how to operate a whole carcass butchery business (you're welcome for the pun), but I'm in no massive rush to have my own place, for example, which a lot of people do ask me about...!
I could say all the same when it comes to Floffal, though there's more nuance with that - I've been doing more and more writing and press and this is an exciting way of potentially earning some more money - it's all developing all the time. I continue to seek and receive the opportunities that come my way and make them as profitable for me as possible, but this is never just limited to financial. You can and need to earn a decent amount through experience alone.
What’s the most unexpected part of your role?
How much we all do, and must, look after each other. It's easy to spend an entire day butchering and working solidly, demanding so much of yourself physically and also concentrating, that it's easy to get to the afternoon having not stopped, or properly eaten or drunk anything. I'm very conscious that making a round of cups of tea can offer just a little re-set, which is so important, and it's a way of caring about the people around you and saying you appreciate their work. It sounds like such a cliche, but kindness is really key, particularly in what can be an abrasive environment.
Perhaps with Floffal, it would be unexpected to hear that I really do not eat that much meat. I make sure to have at least 3-4 days without it each week. There's so many ways of doing Floffal, taking inspiration from offal, without the need to constantly seek out meat. I think that's in the messaging as much as the offal is.
What’s the best part of the job?
How immersive and all-consuming it is. Butchery is meditative. It's so sensory and fulfilling, and it really is a very crucial, skilled practice that a lot of people rely on, so having that sort of responsibility is very grounding. I think my job is a privilege, getting such intimate access and ability to interact with wonderful animals and then to ultimately provide for skilled, influential chefs, their establishment, and customers.
Floffal feels the same - it's the way I live my life anyway, but I've managed to make a 'thing' of it and bring other people into the experience of it with me. In both cases, you can never do enough, there is always opportunity to learn and develop. It's such a giving occupation, and so creatively stimulating. I love animals, I love offal, and I get to be surrounded by them all the time.
What’s the hardest or most draining part?
Not being taken seriously or being given equal recognition as a butcher. I've got a lot of examples of male and female customers immediately seeking my male colleague's attention, despite me standing in front of them, ready to serve them and quite capable of doing so. I'll start talking but then my male colleague will contribute and the conversation will immediately be reverted to them. That is inhibiting and frustrating.
People do make comments, jokes, judgements, some worse than others, but there's a somewhat inevitable aspect of that, because I do know that it is simply quite rare to see a woman working as a butcher in this country. And there's a catch-22 of being able to respond in a way that is strong, but not reactionary or 'sassy' (which I am not, naturally), in front of and behind the scenes. I never quite know how to respond, but then if I don't, I feel like I'm not doing my part for representing myself and women in this space, and that is something I have every opportunity to do.
Again, it does get lonely. This comes with Floffal, too. Doing something so independently, constantly needing 'feeding' (in more ways than one) to sustain your progress and learning and relevance. Organising and planning and getting into the good headspace to be able to write and communicate and document all your work. It's a lot.
What skills matter most in your role, beyond the obvious ones?
Patience. Communication. Trust. Authenticity. Kindness.
I'd say this for both being a butcher and being Floffal. You have to be patient with yourself, first, so you can then be patient with everyone else (and you rely on all those other people - including colleagues - to keep your work going).
The ability to listen, multi-task and plan ahead, independently and in collaboration with others. It’s not just a case of getting things cut, prepped and portioned to specifications. You need to cut according to no or absolute minimum waste, and think about what we can use for the counter and for retail as well as/while we’re doing wholesale orders.
I try to encourage a reactionary, intuitive way of cooking via Floffal, rather than a prescriptive one. This demands all of those listed above. It's also a big part of preserving your own authenticity, which in the long run will help you stay calm, and crucially, kind.
What did you have to learn the hard way?
To let go. Sometimes people just don't care about the same things as you. Not everyone will understand you, or seek to. Do not worry about other people's opinions of you, particularly if you wouldn't trust or seek their opinion on anything else (even if they like to shout about it).
What advice would you give to someone trying to break into this role today?
For butchery and for Floffal: find fulfilment in being completely immersed in your work. It is physically and mentally demanding, and there is ALWAYS work to be done (this includes, if you want to be a butcher, a LOT of cleaning!) Love animals, love food, love always being able to do more.
Go into a butcher's and talk to them. Ask questions, seek advice, and be curious - right down to the farm, the farmer, the breeding, the animal’s diet, the animal's environment, welfare, and the anatomy of your food - all of that is significant and infuses through your work and your meal.
If you're a 'labor of love' person, really lean into the romance of it, however airy-fairy it seems. That will carry you through. Trust you'll be ok and you'll manage, even when it's really tough and even when you might have to do something else alongside to supplement 'the romance'. Fucking go for it.
