SMALL businesses from across Britain gathered for a bargain in Little Hereford for the annual Tenbury Wells Mistletoe Auction.

It was the first of three auctions to take place over the coming weeks. Mistletoe, holly and Christmas trees were available.

The mild winter has led to an unusually high number of berries and buyers are expected to get a bargain. One organiser said that a holly lot, sold for £37, would have reached £100 a year ago.

Vic Fowell bought 10 lots for little over £100, a price he described as “cheaper than last year.”

John Agnew travelled from Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk, to buy his stock for the festive period. “You can’t get the quantities there,” he said, “and it’s a really good tradition.”

It was not just businesses in attendance. Michelle Lloyd, from Tenbury Wells, was visiting the auction with her family.

“We heard about this a couple of weeks ago and we’re just having a look,” she said.

The auction dates back more than 100 years and is run in conjunction with the town’s mistletoe festival, which began in 2004.

It has led to an annual national mistletoe day, which will take place on Monday, December 1.

More auctions take place on Tuesday, December 2 and 9.