Graze ceo: ‘going from clicks to bricks isn’t easy’

By Nicholas Robinson

- Last updated on GMT

Customers want to buy Graze products online and in-store, says ceo Anthony Fletcher
Customers want to buy Graze products online and in-store, says ceo Anthony Fletcher

Related tags Finance

Graze, the £68M turnover online snack manufacturer, had to make big changes to its manufacturing and operating systems after gaining listings with Sainsbury and Boots, its ceo Anthony Fletcher has said.

The firm announced it would sell products in 1,200 Sainsbury and Boots​ stores on Monday (June 13), after trading online only since it was founded in 2008.

“It shouldn’t be underestimated how tricky it is to operate several different business models,” ​Fletcher told FoodManufacture.co.uk in this exclusive podcast.

“But, moving from ‘clicks’ to ‘bricks’ … a lot has had to change,” ​he added.

Winning supermarket listings didn’t represent a slow-down in online sales, Fletcher confirmed.

The company, which was acquired by the US private equity firm the Carlyle Group for £50M in 2012, saw revenues up 30% last year, he said.

‘Multichannel gives us a real advantage’                 

“Selling in multichannel ​[as well as online] gives us a real advantage,” ​he added.

“We have customers who want to buy us online, but we also have a lot of customers who want to buy us in store ​[because] they see snacking as impulsive.”

Read an interview with Fletcher in the September issue of FoodManufacture.co.uk’s sister title Food Manufacture ​by subscribing.

Meanwhile, Graze was the winner of the Judges’ Star Performer Award at last year’s Food Manufacture Excellence Awards.

Want to win a food and drink manufacturing Oscar, then read more information on how to enter​ can be found here. You can also call Jane Rollinson on 01293 610 439 or email: Jane.Rollinson@wrbm.com.

Related news

Show more

Related product

Related suppliers

1 comment

What a Shame

Posted by David Ryder,

The offer was previously exclusive and there was always that slight frisson of what was in the box this week. Now you can just buy it in the supermarket and it is just another thing to put in your basket. Cancelling the current order seems the most likely option

Report abuse

Follow us

Featured Jobs

View more

Webinars

PRODUCTS & SERVICES