20 jobs for black pudding firm after £1.4M investment
The firm, which supplies major supermarkets such as Tesco and Sainsbury, claims to currently produce 35t of black pudding a week from its Bridgehall Lane premises in Bury, Greater Manchester. However, it said it aimed to increase that after the cash boost.
The money had enabled it to lease two units next to its current base, which it aimed to convert, adding a mezzanine floor and more than doubling floor space from 929m2 to 2,323m2.
It has expanded its packaging and refrigerated storage capacity as part of the investment, which it believed would help double turnover to £6M over the next two years.
Broaden the range
And it has acquired new machinery which would broaden the range of products it could offer and sectors it could target. It said it now aimed to target ex-pat and indigenous consumers in Spain, the US and Hong Kong.
The business has taken on five new members of staff in the past year, bringing employee numbers to 60, and plans to create 20 new roles within three years.
HSBC’s Manchester Commercial Centre supported the project with a £460,000 funding package, in a deal led on behalf of the bank by senior commercial manager Jack Gorin. The funding came from the bank’s new £200M fund to help small to medium-sized enterprises in Greater Manchester.
“The investment will drive the expansion of the business,” said md Debbie Pierce. “Not only will we be able to produce more, it means we can develop new product lines, such as gluten free and chilli flavour. We can also produce different pack sizes, as well as frozen products, which will open up more opportunities in the foodservice sector.”
‘Overseas opportunities’
“We are particularly excited about the overseas opportunities. We know that black pudding is popular with ex-pats but we are also confident that it will appeal to local palates. We have received enquiries from overseas for a number of years but have been unable to produce enough black pudding to satisfy demand. This investment will change that.”
HSBC Manchester area commercial director Jason Trigg said: “Black pudding is something you traditionally associate with the UK, but we have seen a number of British food and drink brands successfully launch into overseas markets and I’m sure the Bury Black Pudding Company will do the same.
“We are pleased to have supported the investment and look forward to continuing our strong relationship with the business.”
The Bury Black Pudding Company was founded in 2002 by Debbie Pierce and Richard Morris, who initially sold black puddings derived from Richard’s father’s recipe on a Bury market stall.
