There’s profit in premium, says Noble boss
The new boss of Noble Foods’ ultra-premium desserts business says he is convinced that premium products still have real growth potential, despite the economic downturn.
The Serious Desserts operation, which is based in Llantrisant, south Wales, was founded by Andrew Lord, former md of The Serious Food Company (SFC), who will now run the business again following its acquisition by egg producer Noble Foods.
Lord, who is aiming to triple the operation’s turnover to £9M and double its headcount to 120 in three years, accepted that consumers were tightening their belts, but said the market for premium products would benefit as people ate out less and entertained more at home.
However, he accepted that there was “quite a gap” between the price of his ultra-premium desserts, which are available in Waitrose and Sainsbury, and many other products on the market. “I would expect that the retail prices of some of our products need to decrease slightly.”
On the other hand, there was little point in trying to compete with mass-market, high-volume producers of desserts such as Uniq’s Minsterley factory, which has struggled to make money for several years, said Lord. “We are definitely seen as a niche brand that is bringing real innovation to the market, and that is what retailers want. I’m going on a roadshow at the moment to present what we can do to all of the major supermarkets. We have a lot of growth potential. I’ve basically got a blank sheet of paper. We’ve got an 85,000 sq ft unit and we’re only using 22,000sq ft and we’ve got a willing workforce of staff trained in the manufacture of premium desserts.”
As part of the deal the business has been renamed Noble Foods Desserts, but will continue to trade under the Serious Food brand. The firm’s award-winning product range includes Gianduja Mousse with Sea Salted Caramel and White Chocolate and Morello Cherry Truffles.
The Serious Food Company (SFC), meanwhile, has announced plans to change its name as part of a strategic overhaul to reflect a renewed focus on juices and smoothies.
The move, which follows the sale of the desserts business and SFC’s acquisition of Dutch juices and smoothies manufacturer Hoogesteger, takes SFC back to its roots after a period of diversification.
It also raises questions over the future of the SFC’s chilled soups business, although sources close to the firm said they did not believe a sale was on the cards.
SFC’s new chief executive Paul Bates, who took the helm at SFC last month, declined to comment on plans for soup, but said the company’s recent “diversification into new product categories has meant that our juice division has not enjoyed the necessary levels of focus or investment over recent years"
He added: “The Serious Food Company will change its name to reflect its renewed focus on its core juice and smoothie business over the next 12 months.”
