When champion shooter Ray Probert told his friends he wanted to open a gun shop in Staffordshire, they said that the venture wouldn’t last six months.

But Ray, aged 58, had the last laugh at the weekend as Rugeley Guns and Tackle in Market Square, Rugeley, celebrated its 25th anniversary. “Friends of mine in the business said it would never last. They said I’d never make a go of it in Rugeley. But 25 years on here we are.” When the Proberts first opened Ray’s wife Jill took the helm while he carried on as a lorry driver.

Two and a half years later the store was so busy that Ray, who lives on the Pear Tree estate, was able to come on board full-time.

“There’s a huge amount of interest around here, we are surrounded by clay pigeon shooting in Staffordshire,” he said.

Mr Probert fell in love with shooting as a child after being introduced to the sport by a family friend.

“I’ve been doing it since I was about 10-years-old,” the father of three said.

During his time behind the trigger Mr Probert has held a range of titles, including West Midlands regional shooting champion, and Staffordshire county shooting champion.

And the Proberts’ son Bruce, now aged 27, followed in his dad’s footsteps. Bruce was named Staffordshire junior shooting champion at the same time as his father held the adult county title in 1997.

But Ray said his two daughters, Amy, aged 33, and Cassie, 31, had never shared the same enthusiasm for the sport.

“They’ve never been that keen sadly, it was only my lad,” he said.

The store in Market Square has undergone a full refit to mark its 25th birthday which was celebrated at the weekend.