Food and drink business leaders come together for inaugural Ward Hadaway event

50 executives from Yorkshire’s dynamic food and drink industry came together for an Industry Leaders event, discussing the major issues facing the sector today.

The exclusive event, organised by a collaboration between Ward Hadaway, Santander Mazars and JLT, brought together leading figures in the Yorkshire food and drink industry at Rudding Park Hotel & Spa near Harrogate.

Two short seminars were followed by dinner and a keynote speech from Ian Wright, director general of the Food and Drink Federation, “the voice of the UK food and drink industry”.

The event enabled leaders in the food and drink sector to meet with peers, hear the views of a variety of leading sector specialists and share their own insights into the future of the sector.

David Miles of GSCOP, a Leeds-based grocery retail consultancy, was up first to discuss major issues for supermarket suppliers, including how to manage the commercial relationship with buyers, having worked in the supermarket industry, including as a commercial director for Asda, for 30 years.

He said: “Supermarkets didn’t have much power in the 1970s, they were much more fragmented, which made it harder to get good distribution. But times have changed. How do you manage those relationships now?

“The more that can be formalised and agreed up front, the more time you can spend on growing your business.”

Miles’ engaging and practical talk was followed by a presentation from Nicola Thomas, director at the Food and Drink Exporters Association and Philip Evans, founder and director of Global Food and Drink Brands which helps manufacturers and suppliers expand into the Far East market.

Thomas said: “Brexit is hanging over everyone’s heads and creating an enormous amount of uncertainty. The government created a five-year export plan, but the general election is adding another layer of uncertainty.

“Most members are reporting increased export sales but people have realised quickly you can’t rely on currency alone – it’s not a solid base on which to build an export business on. One thing that has come back loud and clear was that people value the quality and innovation that comes out of the UK.

“Think about that in your pitches,” she said, “and don’t be afraid to blow the ‘Made in Britain’ trumpet.”

Philip echoed Nicola’s views, explaining that the UK’s regulatory regime and high consumer standards meant UK produced food and beverages were highly regarded and in high demand globally. The Far East offers a significant opportunity for UK businesses, but entry into that market requires local knowledge and a strong internet/social media marketing strategy.

Keynote speaker Ian Wright, director general of the Food and Drink Federation, finished off the educational part of the day by discussing his views on the state of the sector in these turbulent times, and how manufacturers can best position themselves for a successful future.

He stressed the significant impact Brexit would have on UK business – particularly with respect to the impact it will have on EU workers and recommended that this was an area all businesses should assess now to determine the impact it may have on future operations.

Philip Jordan of Ward Hadaway spoke to TheBusinessDesk.com at the event. He said: “With this event we wanted to help grow Yorkshire’s food and drink businesses, discussing exports, supermarket relationships and more. The food and drink sector in Yorkshire is really strong and we saw an opportunity to bring together businesses in this sector and collaborate with the other sponsors in a field in which we all specialise.”

Alastair Morris of Santander said: “Events like these are about sharing the knowledge within the room. We have brought a wide range of our clients and want to encourage lively debate between them.”

We also caught up with Stephen Foster of Mazars and Ian Hesselden of insurance brokers JLT.

Hesselden said: “Our role is to listen to the regions food and drink sector and in doing so better understand how we can assist organisations in managing the risks they face, and at the same time, exploit the opportunities in front of them and allow them to achieve their corporate goals.”

Foster finished: “Mazars have made big strides into the food and drink market in Yorkshire, aligning ourselves with the YCCC for example. We want to help clients going through a difficult period with Brexit, and as advisors with international coverage we can add a lot of value. Yorkshire has a unique identity in the UK as a whole and we have quality products coming from the region so we need to be good at being creative and self-publicising.”