He started off selling stew in a farmers' market and now has his one-pot range in major retailers, a new book and the former managing director of Compass Group on board as chairman. This is the story of Stewed!
Alan Rosenthal I'm ambitious and ever since I can remember I've wanted to do my own project. I'd done marketing and product development in retail non-food roles and a bit of private-chef work. I felt my retail background and interest in food would marry.
Richard Nieto I was attracted to the sheer passion Alan's got for the product he's created and the product itself. That sector needs unique products not just another soup or potted salad. The one-pot meal is a very big growth area.
AR I didn't want to be building a business that solely survived at umpteen farmers' markets. I wanted to see these products in a supermarket. I got into Harvey Nichols and Budgens. The advantage of Harvey Nichols is that the key buyers from all the supermarkets go there and look at what's new. At the other end of the scale I was selling in a High Street store, so buyers could see it worked on two different levels.
RN I know a lot of people in the industry so I canvass assistance to help the business. I think what you take out of a big corporate like [food service organisation] Compass Group is planning. You're always looking two to three years ahead of yourself while planning the day-to-day business. Stewed! has got a range of one pot stews, so do we continue to develop that range? What format can we package the stew in? All of those things...
AR We've outsourced our production to a top-notch supplier. One of the challenges of supplying chilled foods to the supermarkets is all the accreditation you have to meet. That takes a lot of manpower and expense. So we outsourced that element of the business, ensuring that the company I outsourced to adhered to all the criteria and could produce a product that was close to what I made for the farmers' market.
RN In businesses that are started by the creator, one thing they need work with is strategy. Where does it want to be in five years' time? What do the directors want to get out of the business in those five years? One of my key challenges is to build some structure into the planning and management.
AR The way the customer perceives you changes. We're not a big supplier to the multiples yet, although we hope to be, so we have to start presenting in a different way and being more professional; to show we mean business.
RN I debate with the guys to get their minds thinking a little bit further outside the box although Alan is very good at that anyhow.
AR Richard became a bit of a mentor before he came to Stewed! as chairman. He has had a huge amount of experience. I've learnt over the last couple of years that getting advice from people who might have been through similar situations before is so important. My business partner Mark is an expert on the operational side but to a certain degree we're feeling as we go. With Richard, there's a bit more strategy. We're making some key decisions about what we want to achieve this year, and it's more structured.
RN I'm there as a sounding board. Alan rings me whenever he wants but I'm also there to sometimes say 'we don't really need to get off there now, we've got this opportunity in front of us, let's see it through and not get distracted'. Somebody as passionate as Alan wants to do everything for everybody and sometimes as a small business you just can't. You've got to have somebody who helps you define where the priorities are.
AR Richard has a lot of contacts. It's easier to go and meet people using his influence. His very nice address book has come in handy.
RN What I like about Alan is his passion. It doesn't matter if a customer buys a few pots or 100 pots he wants it to be right every single time.
AR Richard's very gregarious—he doesn't beat around the bush. He treats us with respect. Ultimately he wants the business to succeed and he's excited about it. To have someone of his calibre is fantastic.
RN The number one challenge is getting the product known by more people and registered by more organisations. There are no plans for international development at this stage, although it wouldn't be crossed off. It's about getting a solid UK base of customers.
