Iceland Seafood chief executive Bjarni Ármannsson sees a brighter future for his retained Grimsby plant, be it in the company’s ownership or eventually not.
Job loss fears for almost 200 staff have been allayed after retail contracts were won by the processor - approaching its third anniversary. It has led the Reykjavik team to pause the sales process as it brings a new perspective to the Great Grimsby Business Park operation.
Two attempts to sell fell by the wayside after it was openly marketed, either side of Christmas, now that is on hold.
Read more: Administrators appointed at 'abruptly closed' Grimsby seafood firm with 80 jobs lost
“We have added significant new business, operations will be running at full speed and we will need the personnel to be running the equipment as we continue operations as normal,” Mr Ármannsson said when asked about the headcount, which remains.
“With all the ambiguity around the business in the last few months there have been clients who decided they could not live with the uncertainty, but other work we have retained. We have a better utilisation of the factory now than we had last year, and having managed the impact of the volatility we are looking at the future brighter than we were last year.”
Formed with the merger of a Bradford-based entity it owned and the existing Havelok business in the cluster, the mothballed Five Star Fish site was taken on after standing vacant for almost two years.
But getting it up and running collided with the Covid outbreak, and the Brexit implications that saw supply-hitting deadlines for customs processes become a moving feast, with many stocking up on key product - a move Iceland Seafood was not then geared up to make.
Mr Ármannsson’s latest update suggested a corner had been turned after a tough second half to 2022 was played out in the investors’ gaze.
“The timing is very challenging, every business is trying to hold what they have in terms of resources,” he said. “We are still interested in taking part in consolidation which we feel necessary for the industry going forward, but we will see.
“I am a big believer in the business and the management team; we have a very good team in place, building the business. It only started three years ago, and it has been a combination of headwinds from external conditions, such as Covid and Brexit, and the high volatility of prices and a fast market that created a challenging environment.
“When making decisions for the future we are positive. We are grateful for all the support we have had from both customers and suppliers in recent months.”
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