If you ever wanted proof of the benefits of focus, look at Salar Smokehouse. It produces just one basic product -- its 'Flaky' hot-smoked salmon -- in a narrow range of pack formats. But it does so with amazing professionalism for a company that is not just at the small end of the SME scale, but has the logistical disadvantage of being based in the Outer Hebrides.
Despite this less-than-convenient location, Salar supplies direct to retailers, caterers and sandwich makers throughout the UK within 48 hours.
It has even updated its despatch systems to incorporate Parcelforce Worldwide Distribution Manager. This allows it to track and trace parcels at the click of a button and resolve any customer queries quickly and effectively.
Salar Flaky Smoked Salmon has a history typical of many craft products. Co-owner Jane Twelves had been making 'flaky smoked salmon' in her home kitchen before attempting to exploit it commercially.
She and husband Eric were running a fish farm on South Uist, but decided to move into a more added-value side of the salmon industry. The trouble was, they couldn't find any commercially-available kit with which to scale-up the process.
Eventually, Eric had the 'eureka moment' and was able to design his own unique kiln, the design of which is still a closely guarded secret.
The company still describes its processes as 'hand-crafted', but is applying conventional manufacturing techniques where possible to streamline production. For example, it is now buying its salmon in fillet form to reduce waste and disposal costs, and the process for washing fillets after salting has now been semi-automated, reducing both time and water usage.
Now, Salar has come up with a novel packaging solution that will cut costs and reduce environmental impact. Trade customers are to receive their salmon in a 100% recyclable cardboard box with a re-usable insulated liner that can simply be returned to Salar in a pre-paid envelope.
As one of the judges put it: "For a small company, Salar is doing a number of things that only the large companies normally do, which is quite remarkable."
Category: Meat, Poultry & Seafood
Winner: Salar Smokehouse
Shortlisted: Cranswick Country Foods, Dawn Group, Flagship Foods, Lloyd Maunder, Smithfield Murray