Around Noon Foods plans to open a new UK factory in order to support its future expansion, following impressive organic growth in recent years. The 30,000 sq ft facility, set to open this year, will be Around Noon’s sixth manufacturing site and is expected to generate around 200 employment opportunities. The factory will produce a variety of food products, including sandwiches, salads, wraps, and fruit pots.
The decision to invest in the new factory comes on the back of strong organic growth for Around Noon, as the company secured several significant contracts within the travel, foodservice, and coffee sectors. The factory will be situated alongside the company’s existing facility in Slough, near London, which was established in 2017.
This move follows the recent acquisition of local competitor The Soho Sandwich Company in June, which will further enhance Around Noon’s position in the food-to-go market. The company’s CEO, Gareth Chambers, highlighted the remarkable growth of their Slough site, indicating a substantial increase in revenue from £4m ($5m) per year in 2018 to around £30m per year presently. The current site produces 400,000 products each week.
The addition of the new factory will significantly boost Around Noon’s manufacturing capacity in Slough by approximately £50m. Chambers expressed his satisfaction in securing additional premises at Slough Trading Estate, emphasizing their commitment to sustained growth.
Founded over 30 years ago in Northern Ireland, Around Noon specializes in producing chilled, hot, frozen, and bakery products across multiple sites in the UK and Ireland. The acquisition of The Soho Sandwich Company will result in the formation of an expanded food-to-go supplier with 800 employees and revenues exceeding £80m ($99.8m) annually.
The Soho Sandwich Company, while maintaining its own identity within the larger group, will continue serving its existing customers across various channels, including foodservice, retail, events, and hospitality. Notably, the new Slough factory will not handle the production of any Soho Sandwich Company products, as they will continue to be manufactured in north London.
