The combined business is projected to deliver £20m in revenue for this year, and will operate from the Dean’s production plant in Huntly, Aberdeenshire, following a six-month transition period.
All Duncan’s employees will be offered a role at the Dean’s facility, which is located 54 miles away, while the Laurencekirk site will be put up for sale once production is ceased.
“The acquisition of Duncan’s of Deeside enables us to build on our recent successful organic growth by acquiring a well-established, high-quality business in the shortbread market,” said Bill Dean, managing director at Dean’s of Huntly.
“We are excited to build on the successful journey begun by the Duncan family and their team.”
Dean founded the business alongside his wife Helen in 1975, and now employs 130 people to produce handcrafted shortbread, biscuits and savoury bites.
Co-owner and managing director of Duncan’s of Deeside, Paul Duncan, will remain with the combined businesses as deputy MD, having taken over the firm from his parents when they retired.
“We are very excited to work with the Dean’s of Huntly team to deliver the next exciting phase of growth for the combined businesses,” Duncan said.
Mutually beneficial move
The phased transition will begin with reducing the number of shifts run at the Duncan’s facility, initially from three to two, then to one and finally to zero.
This process will take place over a six-month period, during which production will be gradually transferred across to the 10,000 square foot site in Huntly. Both businesses make branded and private label products and use similar manufacturing methods, which should enable a smooth transition.
Dean’s of Huntly has invested heavily in the facility in recent years, which Dean said has the capacity to produce around £30m in sales when optimised. Meanwhile, the combined business will deliver £3.5m in combined export revenue, which Dean is also hoping to grow.
“Both businesses are very similar, so behaving as competitors didn’t benefit either side,” he explained.
“This combination opens us up to new opportunities that we may have been hesitant to do as independent businesses, while also reducing costs and creating new efficiencies.”
Another benefit of the deal is that it leads to a more diversified customer base, with no single customer now responsible for more than 18% of revenue.
“In this day and age with a lot of instability in the market, you want a stronger spread of business,” Dean added.
No further financial details have been shared.
