As part of the investment, the Belfast-based fund manager has become a minority shareholder in the business, which operates out of North London, Slough and its Newry headquarters.
Founded by the Chambers family in 1989, Around Noon has grown to become one of the UK’s leading food-to-go manufacturers, producing a range of products including sandwiches, wraps, salads, breakfast and hot deli options, snack pots and bakery items.
In 2023, the manufacturer acquired London’s Soho Sandwich Company, which at the time brought in an additional 300 staff, as well as its North London facility.
According to Around Noon’s own estimates, it currently supplies over four million products every month into sectors ranging from convenience and supermarket retail to contract catering and events, travel, education, forecourt and coffee.
“We see huge growth opportunities in the UK and Ireland, and taking on equity backing will be incredibly helpful to us in being able to scale significantly,” said Around Noon CEO Gareth Chambers.
“We are grateful to the Whiterock team for their support and expertise and believe they can play a very valuable role in the next phase of Around Noon and our growth.”
Backed by what it calls “institutional partners and private investors”, Whiterock has been operating across Northern Ireland for over 14 years and specialises in partnering with growing SMEs aiming to expand their operations by offering flexible debt, equity and brokerage solutions.
Around Noon’s deal with Whiterock will form an important pillar in its stated ambition to become the UK and Ireland’s “leading food-to-go manufacturer” by 2030.
Whiterock CEO Paul Millar added: “Around Noon is an incredible story of Northern Ireland business success and a company that is truly respected in the food-to-go sector. We are extremely pleased to partner with Gareth and the team to help them realise their ambitions for further growth.
“Beyond capital, we provide strategic guidance, industry insight and access to a wider network to support management teams through their next phase of growth, and we are incredibly excited about what we believe Around Noon can achieve.”
