📙 Part 2: Describe a person you know who runs a family business

This Episode's Vocabulary

Stand out (phrasal verb) – to be much better or more important than someone or something else. → Someone who stands out in particular is Steven.

Run a business (verb phrase) – to be in charge of; to manage a business. → Steven runs a well-known family bakery.

Pop into (phrasal verb) – to visit a place for a short time. → I've spoken to him when I've popped into the shop.

Down to earth (idiom/adjective) – practical, reasonable, and friendly. → He's always been really friendly and down to earth.

Been around for (phrasal verb) – to have existed for a certain amount of time. → The bakery itself has been around for more than a hundred years.

Take over (phrasal verb) – to begin to have control of something. → Steven took over the business from his father.

Best known for (verb phrase) – to be famous for a particular thing. → They're best known for their traditional Scottish baked goods.

Keep (something) alive (verb phrase) – to continue to have or do something. → He's managed to keep the family traditions alive.

Revamp (verb) – to change or arrange something again in order to improve it. → The shop interior has been revamped.

Carry on a legacy (verb phrase) – to continue a tradition or history left by previous generations. → For him, it's about carrying on this kind of legacy.

Dedication (noun) – the willingness to give a lot of time and energy to something because it is important. → I really admire his dedication.

Continuity (noun) – the fact of something continuing for a long period of time without being changed or stopped. → It's a symbol of tradition, community, and family continuity.

Questions and Answers

Maria: Hello, hello dear listener and welcome into IELTS Speaking Part two. We've got an interesting topic for you today. Describe a person you know who runs a family business. You should say who this person is, how you knew him or her, what family business he or she does, and explain why he or she runs the family business.

Maria: Rory, give us your story. Rory's story.

Rory: Well, I know a few people like this, but someone who stands out in particular is called, it's a man called Steven, who runs a well-known family bakery in Dundee called Goodfellow and Stephen. It's quite a famous local business, actually, and I got to know him a few years ago through a friend who worked there part-time, just while they were studying.

I've spoken to him several times since then, when I've popped into the shop, and he's always been really friendly and down to earth. The bakery itself has been around for, oh God, it must be more than a hundred years, and it's still run by the same family. Steven took over the business from his father, who managed it for decades before retiring.

They're best known for their traditional Scottish baked goods, like butteries , bridies , shortbreads , but they also do fantastic modern cakes and pastries as well. So, if Scottish cuisine isn't your thing, then there are other things to choose from.

What's really impressive about Steven is how he's managed to keep the family traditions alive while adapting to more modern tastes, I suppose. He's introduced new recipes. The shop interior has been revamped and there's also stuff on social media all the time. So, that helps attract younger customers as well.

Despite all these changes, he's been very careful to maintain the same quality and community feel that people associate with the bakery, and that's quite good. He once mentioned that he runs the family business because he feels it's part of his identity, and it connects him to Dundee and, well, his family's history, I suppose. For him, it's not just about selling bread, it's about carrying on this kind of legacy that's worked well, for generations before him, and they've worked hard to build that.

I really admire his dedication and the pride that he takes in his work. It's clear the bakery isn't just a business to him. It's this sort of symbol of tradition and community and family continuity as well.

Maria: And what about other people? Do they like the place?

Rory: When I've mentioned it, they say they like it, but it's not a common topic of conversation.