News

Jules Millward
Harlech Foodservice says the two-day Expo 26 at Venue Cymru in Llandudno could smash all previous records after last year’s event pulled in £1.5 million in orders.

The fast-growing family firm believes takings could double again with up to 3,000 buyers expected through the doors on March 11 and 12.

Among the trade customers will be representatives from major players in the public and private healthcare and education sectors, along with the tourism and hospitality industry.

It comes after two years of rapid expansion for the Gwynedd-headquartered company which has added new hubs in Carmarthen, Caerphilly and Telford to its long-established centres in Cricieth and Chester.

Already 115 suppliers have booked their stands at the Expo including global giants of the food and drink industry like Coca-Cola, Pepsi, Kellogg’s, Premier Foods, Cadbury’s, Nestle, Kelly’s Ice Cream, Walkers Crisps and Unilever.

They will be joined by nationally known Welsh brands such as Jones Village Bakery, Llaeth y Llan Village Dairy, Radnor Spring, Sidoli ice cream, Ferraris Coffee and from across the border Cheshire Farm Ice Cream, Purity Soft Drinks from Wednesbury and Liverpool’s Cottom Sausages.

Harlech will also be showcasing their move into the fresh fruit and vegetable business at a special hub at the centre of the exhibition hall at Venue Cymru which will also feature their new butchery offer and their own-brand Country Range of products.

Toby Foskett, a grandson of Harlech founders Colin and Gill Foskett and the third generation of the family to move into the business, is Category Manager for Fruit, Vegetables and Butchery.

He said: “We have made a successful move into fresh fruit and veg in the last six months and are already supplying to customers including schools, hospitals and care homes in North and South Wales.

“We aim to extend that so the range is available to all customers cross Wales, the North West of England and the West Midlands very soon and could even be offering the service by the time of Expo.

“Our sales are up week on week and with lots of buyers at the Expo and lots of great deals to be done we expect another big sales boost.”

On-day deals will be a feature of this year’s event which is being organised by Commercial Manager Chris Gregson who said that there will be a big focus on deals at this year’s Expo and we’re confident our customers will like what they see.

He added: “But they will have to be there to grab those great offers. Miss the Expo and you’ll miss out.

“It’s also a great opportunity to see the range of food and drink we can supply and with 115 exhibitors already confirmed there will be a fantastic selection of products to be sampled.

“Already customer registrations are up by 65 per cent on last year’s record-breaking event. We had an attendance of 2,200 then and the way things are looking we’re on course to be welcoming more than 3,000 customers across the two days.

“We are drawing from a wider area and more people know about us now across South Wales and in the North West and the Midlands.

“I’m thrilled to announce that Taste Wales will be in attendance showcasing some of the amazing Welsh produce we sell.

“The Expo is a massive event for Harlech Foodservice. We have stepped up on our social media campaign with a countdown and ‘sneak-peaks’ of what customers can expect to see when they visit the show. I really don’t want any of our amazing customers to miss this.”

“Everyone will be hearing from us and already we have had a fantastic response from hospitality businesses across Cheshire and Shropshire in particular.

“While we’ve always had a strong presence in hospitality, it’s exciting to see an increasing number of local authorities, health boards and care home groups from across our area of operations confirming their attendance and helping us to grow into a truly year-round business.”

“While our footprint is growing across the North West, the West Midlands and into South Wales, we’re still proud of our roots.

“Hospitality and tourism remain right at the heart of our business so we’re reshaping our marketing around their needs and listening carefully to their concerns.

“We understand the pressures facing tourism and hospitality businesses and we’re determined to support them in every way we can.”

The Expo is a highlight of the year for Harlech which will showcase the range of products it supplies to restaurants, cafes and even Premiership giants as well as to schools and hospitals, museums and art galleries.

Chris Gregson added: “The aim of the event is to enable suppliers to talk directly to the customer, giving them a chance to tell the story behind their product to their prospective buyers.

“It means they can make face to face contact with the owners of pubs, hotels and village shops and to representatives from the tourism, leisure, education and health sectors across Wales, the North West and the Midlands.”

The Expo is a key event for Harlech which is two years into a three-year £6 million expansion plan which has already created over 100 new jobs taking the workforce to 250 and doubled the size of its transport fleet to over 90 vehicles which deliver up to 5,000 product lines to its private and public sector customers.

Manon Lloyd Jones, from Four Crosses near Cricieth, has spent more than four decades at Harlech Foodservice and insists she still loves every minute.

Manon is one of 10 long-serving staff honoured by the family-firm, with the group clocking up a staggering 269 years of service between them.

The loyal workers were treated to bottles of Lanson champagne and £100 vouchers, presented by Company Chairman Andrew Foskett and his sister and fellow director Laura, as the company celebrated the people who helped build the business from the ground up.

Manon said: “I’ve done pretty much everything here. I was 16 and I wanted to go into nursing but Colin Foskett who started the business offered me a summer job and I’m still here.

“I only had two weeks’ maternity when my first son was born and I have had two more sons since and only had a total of 12 weeks off.

“I’m still enjoying it and when I don’t, I’ll stop but they’ll probably have to turf me out in the end.

“The Fosketts have been a brilliant family to work for and the business has grown so much with lots of changes – there were only six people working with me when I started.”

Paul Owen from Bangor had been working in a cash and carry and joined Harlech as a sales rep when the company moved into dairy goods. Twenty years later he is a National Key Account Manager.

He handles major accounts like Hickory’s Smokehouse who have 36 restaurants from Stockton on Tees in the North East to Swindon in the South West.

Paul said: “I’ve seen the business grow from a £10 million turnover to over £50 million a year and it’s been brilliant to be a part of that. Harlech are a great company to work for.”

Ian Rogers, from Chwilog, joined the business at 18 from Coleg Menai and was working in the stores packing orders when he was given the chance to train as an HGV driver.

He has now been with Harlech for 37 years, most of his time behind the wheel of a delivery lorry and he said: “I love the job going out on the road. You’re your own boss and you get to meet the customers.

“It’s a friendly company and I enjoy working here. Most of my friends are here and we regularly socialise together outside of work.

“I’ve never thought about leaving Harlech. I’ve always been happy here.”

Andrew Foskett said: “In this area big employers are few and far between and all these colleagues here today have known our parents who started the business and have worked in the old depot so we must have been doing something right.

“We like to think that we’re a good employer and it keeps young people in the area and strengthens the Welsh language and culture so there are a lot of knock-on effects from our success.”

Fellow director Laura Foskett added: “It’s always nice to know that people enjoy working for Harlech and want to stay here and that we’re creating more and more job opportunities.”

Also among the long-service award winners was Finance Director Mike Clishem, who’s been with the company for 25 years, Paul Monaghan, 36, Huw Watkin-Griffith, 30, Aled Owen, 29 years, Peter Jones, 23, Dylan Hughes, 22, and Gary McDonnell, 22.

Harlech last year announced a three-year £6 million growth plan which has already seen it open new depots in Carmarthen, Caerphilly and Telford in the last 18 months to add to those at Cricieth and Chester.

Their expansion has already created over 100 new jobs taking the workforce to almost 300 and they now run a fleet of 90 vehicles delivering up to 5,000 product lines.

The business was founded in the town of Harlech in 1972 by Colin and Gill Foskett to supply the holiday market and now deliver to restaurants, pubs, schools and hospitals across Wales and into England.

The founders’ three children, Jonathan, Andrew and Laura, took over the reins from their parents and still sit on the board while a third generation of the family are making their way in the firm.

We know it’s a strong move for us - and here’s what our Managing Director David Cattrall said:

“Adding fresh fruit and vegetables to our offer fills a gap for our customers. It’s always been our ambition to be a total range supplier and buying up a well-established and respected local business fills a gap in our range of products. All the staff at Oren have been offered their job on the same terms and that’s something we were committed to from the start of our discussions.

By September we will have fully integrated Oren into Harlech’s main site and those Oren staff that are happy to come down the road will be made welcome and it’s our hope that they will all come.”

Oren – Welsh for orange – was launched 45 years ago as Ffrwythau DJ Fruit by Dei and Cheryl Jones from their existing greengrocers in Cricieth, rebranded as Oren in 2021, and for the past 12 years the business has been run by their son, Gethin Dwyfor.

They supply Gwynedd and Anglesey schools and care homes and restaurants, hotels, cafes, nursing homes and B&Bs across North Wales.

According to Gethin Dwyfor, recent news that we had been named by the Sunday Times as one of the best places to work in the UK gave him added confidence to make the switch.

He said: “The company was originally called DJ Fruits but we changed it to Oren and it’s always been my plan to build the business and to have a clear succession plan. My dream was for a partnership with a locally based company and that has happened and it was always going to be a condition that our staff could keep their jobs and Harlech have always given that assurance. I will stay on and continue to be involved and that’s very exciting for me as well. I’ve run the business for 12 years and this will now be a new challenge for me with a bigger business.”

David Cattrall added: “Gethin and his team will bring the valuable knowledge and experience of their products and their customers they have gained over the years. We don’t have a fresh fruit and vegetable offer and this now gives us a total food service solution for our customers. It’s a great fit because the Oren operation dovetails neatly with what we do and their ethos as a family-run business chimes perfectly with our approach. Gethin’s role will be to help us settle in and to make sure we have a smooth transfer of the business and provide our customers with the right range of stock and the right produce. And that will be Welsh whenever possible.”

Oren’s fleet of 12 delivery vans, three electric-powered, have been taken over by us.

The fruit and vegetables, including locally grown potatoes, supplied by Oren to Gwynedd and Conwy schools have been integrated into school deliveries by us in both counties.

We were founded in 1972, now have sales of £50 million, and cover all of North and Mid Wales and the North West of England from our headquarters near Cricieth and hubs in Chester, Aberbargoed, Carmarthen and Telford.

The addition of the Oren team will take our staff numbers to 300 and our fleet of 65 vehicles delivers up to 5,000 product lines across the whole of Wales, Shropshire, the Midlands and the North West.