Start-up food businesses offered chance of Sainsbury contract

The initiative, called PitchUp with Sainsbury, is part of a national campaign called StartUp Britain, which helps start-up businesses find routes to the market.

As well as the opportunity to meet with head buyers and discuss their products, companies will be mentored by Sainsbury and given advice on everything from packaging to pricing, StartUp Britain’s co-founder Emma Jones told FoodManufacture.co.uk in this exclusive video.

‘Benefit’​

Jones added that, although there is no guarantee how many of the 10 companies – if any – will be offered contracts with Sainsbury after the PitchUp event on September 6, all companies involved would benefit from the experience and the mentoring given.

Over 400 companies applied for the chance to pitch their businesses to Sainsbury, which Jones believed was a result of a growing trend of people attempting to turn their hobby for food production into a career.

Watch this video to find out all about the companies involved in the initiative, which range from an ice-cream producer to a mixed spice firm and even include a nine-year-old boy set to pitch a sweet business.

StartUp Britain is a national campaign set up by eight entrepreneurs in 2011 to help other entrepreneurs and small companies accelerate their businesses to the next level. For example with food and drink businesses it aims to help them get a contract to stock their products within one of the major retailers.