Ann Perkins | Perkier
Perkier Foods, the plant-based, gluten-free snack bar manufacturer, is cooking a handful of recipes to grow the business further. Company founder Ann Perkins reveals
By Murielle Gonzalez
Perkier Foods, the British manufacturer of gluten-free on-the-go snacks, has been trying a handful of new recipes to expand its offering and the business. Company founder Ann Perkins tells me she can’t reveal details, but admits being excited for what’s cooking in the kitchen will add game-changing health benefits to the nutritional profile of its products. “Within the next six months we’ll put these products to market,” she says. Perkins is also enthusiastic for plans on the drawing board to help the brand hit shelves around the world.
Although future growth relies on overcoming the Covid-19 crisis, Perkins remains cheerful. Her company kicked-off April with the Bar-o-meter, an initiative that will see Perkier donate 25,000 bars to food banks across the country.
“Before coronavirus hit the UK there were already 8.4 million people living in food poverty, and unfortunately it is getting worse,” Perkins commented on LinkedIn as she urged connections to nominate beneficiaries — more than a hundred people reacted to her call on the platform. A week after the announcement, Perkier delivered 12,000 units to food banks in Glasgow, West Cheshire and Kings Church Darlington, respectively. The campaign continues apace.
New products in the making and further charitable activity are part of Perkier’s mission to offer nutritious and moreish plant-based goodness to people, addressing the shift in consumer preference for healthier food. As Perkins tells me, we are yet to see the long-lasting impact of the pandemic, particularly on raising awareness of the relationship between health and food consumption. “Diet is the biggest killer of people globally, and we’ve known this for a long time: obesity, diabetes, and heart disease, all usually stem from highly processed, unhealthy diet. We are now living a pandemic, and it’s frightening,” she adds.
Nonetheless, the timing of the product launch is strategic and owes a great deal to Perkins’ consumer empathy — a core value she has gained through 16 years in the food and drink retail sector.
Make it personal
The first Perkier bar entered the UK market four years ago. From being sold in exclusive London stores Wholefoods and Planet Organic, the brand is today listed in ASDA, Morrisons, Sainsbury’s, independent stores, and on-the-go in cafes, gyms and leisure parks.
The Perkier portfolio now comprises bars, bites and porridge in a variety of nuts and fruits combination, each snack boasting 6 grams of protein, high fibre, and no refined sugars — all in under 150 calories.
The business started for personal reasons. In 2009, Perkins was diagnosed with coeliac disease at a time when gluten-free products were “badly branded, of poor quality, and very expensive” she says. Shopping at a supermarket was quite a depressing experience for her. “It made me realised I had to do it. I’m a scratch cook anyway!” she quips.
The entrepreneurial spirit kicked in fueled by Perkins food industry experience — she spent 12 years working on consumer insights and market research at Heinz. Following a series of prospective ideas, she finally found an opportunity in the marketplace for a brand that is more colourful, engaging, and modern.
“The free-from products on offer at that time wasn’t particularly very healthy,” she explains. “The strategy for a lot of food companies was to take the gluten out, add fat and sugar to make it tasty, and other ingredients to make it edible, but there were not a lot of efforts to use ingredients to make the product nutritious. They also used very refined ingredients — starches, white rice flour, for example — which I’m not a fan of. I’m a fan of whole foods.” Key ingredients in today’s Perkier mix are cacao, goji, chia, orange, and probiotic chicory root fibre for gut health, for example.
Perkier: On a bootstrap
Perkier entered the market as a self-funded project between Ann Perkins and co-founder Steve Turner. “We worked from home for a couple of years and made sure to bootstrap the operation to run the business efficiently,” Perkins tells me.
A revenue-generating company since 2016, Perkier has expanded the team with staff to look after supply chain and food innovation. As the headcount grew to four, Perkier moved to new premises. “We did it all on a sensible budget,” Perkins says.
The on-the-go food sector has remained buoyant in recent years. The global snack bars market size was estimated at $20.15 billion in 2018, Grand View Research reported. The sector, the study revealed, is expected to grow at a 6% CAGR rate until 2025.
But gaining market share in a highly fragmented industry like the food and drink is a significant task for a challenger brand such as Perkier. Particularly, the on-the-go snack segment has seen global food corporations in private equity deals with smaller brands, thus tapping into this market. In 2015, for example, Belgian Lotus Bakeries took a majority stake in Natural Balance Foods, the British maker of Nakd and Trek bars.
The move was followed two years later by US-based Mars in a deal with Kind. In July 2019, five months after Unilever had acquired Graze, Nestlé launched the Yes! bar. Consequently, the former smaller brands have seen their turnover skyrocket, and have enormous marketing budgets to support their growth.
“In 2018 we decided that the competition was starting to be pretty fierce, and was difficult to get more traction; we needed more investment”, Perkins recalls. That year, Nexus Investment Ventures brought Perkier into its fold and helped the brand secure additional funding.
“We also went to several different angel investor meetings,” Perkins says, admitting the experience “was quite nerve-wracking”. The journey saw the Perkier founder pitch to Enterprise 100, the angel investment club at the London Business School, the Surrey Investor Club, and to Oxford Investment Opportunity Network at a London Stock Exchange showcase where she secured a £350k cash injection.
Brand message
Perkins recognises the M&A tactic is the name of the game in this business, but that, she says, is simply not enough. “I think getting the company story across, and the small start-up feel [into the brand] is really important,” she notes.
Second to the brand message, Perkins says, is the nutritional profile of the product, a feature that becomes crucial when it comes to getting the consumers and retailers’ attention. “Retailers are really open to new ideas, and they want to have something different from what everyone else’s got,” she explains.
The next chapter in Perkier’s journey will see the brand with a broader product offering, moreish and nutritious, alongside a revamped brand design. Perkins says she wants people to understand what Perkier stands for more clearly. And what is that? A disruptive, plant-based snack brand that says no to palm oil and yes to the planet with a 100% recyclable packaging.
Perkins is as cheerful and lively as her brand, and I’m in no doubt we’ll see her plans come to fruition in due course. And for an extra punch, she tells me, a new funding round is on the table.