The owner of Ginsters pasties, Soreen, Urban Eat and Higgidy said sales returned to pre-Covid levels in 2021 and revealed it plans to invest £100 million back into the business.
Leicestershire-based Samworth Brothers – one of the UK’s biggest food-on-the-go suppliers – was hit by a drop in sandwich, wrap and salad sales during the pandemic.
However newly filed accounts show a turnover of £1.16 billion in 2021 – almost 11 per cent up on 2020 and on a par with 2019.
The group, which is headquartered in Melton Mowbray where it makes many of the town’s famous pork pies, reported pre-tax profits of almost £17 million last year, compared to losses of £31.6 million a year earlier, as it recovered from what it called the “Covid-19 shocks of 2020”.
It is now planning significant capital investment in its businesses, with more than £100 million earmarked for various big projects between now and 2024.
The business is also trying to mitigate the impacts of cost inflation caused by the war in Ukraine, due to supply chain disruption and commodity shortages in gas, vegetable oil, wheat and corn. At the same time it is also trying to help fight food poverty in Leicester.
It said: “Although 2021 was still a challenging year due to continued lockdowns and the enduring pandemic, our key food-to-go business staged a good recovery to end the year only marginally behind 2019 volumes. Sales have continued to increase in 2022.”
It added: “It was clear from the autumn of 2021 that inflation was going to be the next big challenge.
“We are working hard to mitigate the impact of inflation through dialogue with customers, price recovery mechanisms, efficiencies and collaboration with suppliers.”
Samworth Brothers employs 11,500 people, and has 14 bakeries and kitchens and a fleet of 200 HGVs.
Last spring the fourth-generation family business brought in Hugo Mahoney as its new chief executive who said he “a shared passion in quality food and innovation”, and cited the “many future opportunities for the business”.
In December the business acquired the final third of the Higgidy pies business to become its whole owner. A £10 million expansion of The Higgidy Village is underway at Shoreham-by-Sea with cash going into new equipment, increasing the footprint of the site and upgrading its office and shared spaces.
Samworths has also invested in Freshways, a big food-to-go business in the Republic of Ireland, while its Walkers Deli and Sausage Co business in Leicester has benefited from £3.6 million of new machinery and adaptations to allow it to move to new plant-based ‘alginate’ sausage casings.
During the Covid vaccination programme in 2021 and 2022 Samworths said it donated 50,000 lunch bags to healthcare workers and volunteers in Leicestershire vaccination centres.
In a statement the business said: “Building on our efforts during the pandemic, we are playing a significant role within our communities to help reduce food insecurity. In partnership with Leicester City Council, we have been able to use a combination of our surplus food, manufacturing and distribution capabilities, and relationships with organisations such as food surplus retailer, The Company Shop, to help feed vulnerable children and their families during the school holidays.
“In May 2021, for instance, we worked in partnership with the council and Leicester City Football Club on a holiday food programme which provided families with all the ingredients they needed to make five tasty lunches at home, together with simple instructions for making the meals.
“More recently, we have supported a ‘Pop-up Pantry’ holiday programme in Leicester where eligible families can collect staple foods to ensure children have breakfast, lunch and dinner options over the holiday break.”
