When you’ve been embedded in a community for 17 years, taking over the local café, grocery and post office might seem like a logical step.

That’s the way things transpired for Sarah Leatch and her husband Damien, long-time Macedon locals who took over the Mount Macedon Trading Post just before Easter. 

“Going to work is just like catching up with everyone in the area,” says Sarah. “We both love it. We’ve always been really involved in the local community – Damien coaches junior football and cricket, and having three school-aged kids means we know pretty much everyone.”

The Trading Post is the kind of place that’s all things to all people. It’s a café and wine store, a grocer and a place to pick up take-home meals for the nights when you really can’t be bothered cooking. Its sub-business Mount Macedon Kitchen has an online presence selling housemade cookies, preserves and local wine. It’s also the post office for the community living on the mountain, in one of regional Victoria’s most captivatingly beautiful areas. 

Located about halfway up the mountain, the historic weatherboard shop with its signature red doors is nestled in the typical Macedon landscape of deciduous trees planted by homesick colonials – although at the moment, says Sarah, “there are more leaves on the ground than on the trees!” Out front you’ll usually find customers (and their dogs) resting at tables under the gas heaters, while walking inside is like being enveloped in a cashmere hug (as Sarah notes, heating is important in an area where the winter chill bites hard). 

Another way to beat the chill comes in the form of the house-made pies, rocking the classic combos of chicken and leek, beef or lamb, rosemary and vegetable. Settle in at a table beneath the rugged timber ceiling and chase that pie with a freshly baked friand and a coffee with beans from Gravity roastery. Or you could swing in the direction of roasted pumpkin frittata, toasted Turkish bread with smoked salmon, or one of the chunky sausage rolls with the house tomato relish. Scones with jam and cream are another guaranteed crowd-pleaser.

There are few businesses in Australia where you can post a parcel then grab a bottle of wine to go. Not just any old bottle, either. Regional stars including Bress and Bindi grace these shelves, meaning maximum indecision but a great payoff. Things are more G-rated during the afternoon post-school rush, when milkshakes and chocolates are all the rage. 

As a career change for both Leatches, taking over custodianship of the Mount Macedon Trading Post has been profoundly successful. Sarah had worked as a pharmacy technologist while Damien was in building and construction but, she says, “We both love people and were looking for a real life change. Now that the kids are a bit older – they’re 13, 11 and eight – it was time to grab the opportunity.”

Mt Macedon Trading Post 
03 5426 1471
mtmacedontp.com.au

Open Monday to Sunday 7am – 5pm;
Sunday 8am – 5pm