YOU have a deceptively small shop front, hiding a huge showroom on three floors. And your display kitchens look so beautifully made that people wonder if they are any good to cook in.

So how do you get people in to see the whole range, and then persuade them that these kitchens really do earn their keep?

The answer, Smallbone of Devizes has found for its showroom in Station Road, Beaconsfield, is to run cookery demonstrations.

Since opening here two years ago, they have run a couple of demos with flamboyant chef Raymond Blanc.

Now local cook and cookbook writer Jo Ollis has taken over the mantle, running a series of cookery demonstrations which continue until July, with more in the pipeline.

At her first event on April 29, at which all the proceeds went to a Beaconsfield High School charity, a group of mums watched Jo cook eight delicious but easy supper dishes, packing in eight dishes in one and a half hours.

Thanks to efficient preparation, all eight dishes were prepared and cooked in just an hour and a half, and guests then had the chance to try them all for lunch.

Most of them buzzed with enthusiasm to take the ideas home for their own family meals. So happy mums – but did the cookery morning meet Smallbone’s need to showcase their kitchens?

Manager Nick Bell said: “It’s very good to see people experiencing the practicality as well as the luxury quality of our kitchens. Lots of people have the misconception that it’s all about good looks. It is that, but it has to work as well.

“Lots of chefs choose Smallbone for their own homes, and having Jo work in our demonstration kitchen shows what a pleasure they are to work in.”

The Wolf cooker attracted particular interest, as the group of guests pondered why anyone might want to spend £10,500 on a stove.

When they saw how the Wolf can create restaurant style heat options, from high intensity for searing to the gentlest warmth, it got put on several mental Christmas lists.

Jo Ollis’s cookery courses continue on May 7, June 2, June 19, June 25, July 1, with more planned. For details ring Smallbone of Devizes showroom on 01494 411011.