100 jobs saved as bakery firm escapes administrators
The Netherlands-based company, one of the leading producers of pastries, cakes and caramel wafers in the region, said the multi-million pound deal allowed it to expand its European presence and product portfolio.
“The sale of the Fabulous Bakin’ Boys business to Daelmans Group will ensure that opportunities in ambient cakes and bakery snacks market can be realised using our combined expertise and product offering,” said the firm’s general manager Thijmen Peter de With.
‘Great potential’
“Fabulous Bakin’ Boys has great potential and will benefit from the investment and re-invigoration that an established bakery company such as Daelmans Group can provide.”
Based in Witney, Oxfordshire, Fabulous Bakin’ Boys manufactures a range of baked goods for the grocery sector including flapjacks, muffins and cupcakes.
The firm was named Great British Bounce Back Champion at the 2012 Foodex trade show, held at the Birmingham National Exhibition Centre, helped by a £3M investment in a new packaging machine. The award and exhibition were organised by Food Manufacture Group’s publisher William Reed Business Media.
It is not known at this stage what brought the successful bakery outfit to the point of administration. However, FoodManufacture.co.uk understands that Richard Cooper has been appointed as the new md and that former md Gary Frank and fellow director Jon Frank have left the business.
Cooper is a well-known figure in the food industry, with extensive involvement in previous businesses such as McCambridge Group, Maple Leaf Foods, Premier Foods and RHM.
Reorganisation
He was md of McCambridge Group for 15 months, from September 2011 to December 2012, where he managed a reorganisation of the business and the sale of its cake division to a venture capitalist team. That division then became Bright Blue Foods.
From 2009–2011, he also helped spearhead a recovery and restructure of Maple Leaf UK as commercial director.
A fourth generation, family owned Dutch bakery business, Daelmans Group has a strong growth history and is financially stable with a strong balance sheet. It has declared plans to retain all personnel currently employed by Fabulous Bakin’ Boys.
For more on the deal, read our follow-up article.