Cooplands and Sons BFM 79

COOPLANDS AND SONS

BREAD FOR SUCCESS

COOPLANDS AND SONS

COOPLANDS IS A FAMILY BAKER WHOSE HISTORY GOES BACK TO 1885. THAT FAMILY BAKER GREW TO BECOME THE SECOND-LARGEST BAKERY BUSINESS IN THE UK TODAY.

BREAD FOR SUCCESS PROJECT MANAGED BY: NEIL STOWE “The business has been familyowned and run until October 2019 when I joined as CEO,” explains Belinda Youngs, Cooplands’ CEO. “The business is born and bred in Scarborough and has expanded through both organic growth and acquisitions throughout Yorkshire, the North East and Lincolnshire.”

Cooplands make, bake, and deliver all of its products fresh every day.

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“W

e make everything but the drinks and the crisps!” Youngs says.

“It’s made and baked across our three production sites in Durham, Hull and Scarborough.

It’s grounded in good honest value with a strong focus on pride in how the product tastes.”

The other element of distinction Cooplands and Sons offers is its level of individual service.

“We don’t have any scripts in the store, we believe in knowing our communities, our locals and we believe in personalised service,” says Youngs.

Cooplands has built itself a strong brand and a reputation that goes back nearly 200 years, but it’s not a company to

rest on its laurels. Talking with Youngs it’s clear she has big plans for the business.

“Going forward we intend to double the size of the business in five years, from 170 shops to 330, and expand our geographic footprint,” she tells us. “The challenge is making sure we make smart decisions at the right time as we grow.”

RISING DOUGH

This isn’t something Cooplands is going to be rushing into, the planning process is detailed and in-depth.

“We’re currently in the process of developing a fiveyear strategy. We have identified the key initiatives across all the areas of the business,”

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By the side of business in the North

We provided Cooplands Bakery with a funding facility which helped them to keep 152 shops open during lockdown.

Shot in accordance with government guidance.

By the side of business

All lending is subject to status. Authorised by the Prudential Regulation Authority and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority and the Prudential Regulation Authority under Registration Number 119278.

TOGETHER WE ARE STRONG P R O U D B U S I N E S S PA R T N E R TO THE UK BAKERS

IREKS U.K. Ltd. | Herons Way | Chester Business Park | CHESTER CH4 9QR | UNITED KINGDOM Tel.: +44 1244 893713 | info@ireks.co.uk | www.ireks.co.uk | www.ireks.ie

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LLOYDS BANK

Northern Retail

“The relationship between Cooplands Bakery and Lloyds Bank spans more than half a decade and during that time has developed into a genuinely collaborative and dynamic partnership. We’ve been by the side of the team through their accelerated growth in recent years and continue to support the ambitious plans, driven by Belinda, to expand the rich heritage of the family-run brand.

EPOS information has evolved a long way over the many years we have worked together.

SOPHISTICATED EPOS. SENSIBLE PRICES.

“And that ambition has remained steadfast even in the face of the turbulence of coronavirus. Indeed, one of the few positives to come out of the shadow of the pandemic is the innovation and agility demonstrated by businesses across the country in diversifying their operations to survive – and even thrive – in the face of adversity.

Cooplands Bakery is no exception. In April, with the safety net of a flexible overdraft facility behind them, it established a new delivery service for essential food items for customers within 15 miles of its three main production sites in Durham, Hull and Scarborough, all the while keeping as many of its 172 shops open as possible during lockdown.

“Not only did this service provide a vital lifeline to families across the North East and Yorkshire, it also shows the creativity and resilience that has always been at the heart of the Cooplands brand. We’re proud to stand by the side of this remarkable business – and others like it right across the UK – as we look to the future, and to recovery.”

Hannah Douglass, relationship director at Lloyds Bank Commercial Banking, 07789 923309 or email hannah.h.douglass@lloydsbanking.com All lending is subject to status.

Please note that any data sent via e-mail is not secure and could be read by others. Lloyds Bank plc.

Authorised by the Prudential Regulation Authority and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority and the Prudential Regulation Authority under Registration Number 119278.

www.lloydsbank.com

Business Intelligence powered by:

We are extremely proud to have such a long association with Cooplands Quality Bakers EPOS Solutions • Cloud Reporting Card Payments • CCTV

Telephone 01723 581559 www.northern-retail.co.uk

IREKS IREKS was founded in Germany in the Bavarian city of Kulmbach by master baker and brewer Johann Peter Ruckdeschel back in 1856. Even though a lot has changed since then, our consistent focus on creating valuable foundations for healthy nutrition has remained. 160 years after its establishment, IREKS still is a family-run company with more than 2,900 employees and serves customers in over 90 countries worldwide.

Our strong field service staff of over 500 highly qualified bakers and confectioners provides support to baking businesses with their technical expertise and in developing innovative and exciting bread and pastry products around the world.

Developing together with our customers as part of a long-standing partnership is ingrained in our corporate philosophy. “Together we are strong” is not just our slogan, but our way of doing business.

For over three decades, we have proudly been providing bakers in the U.K. with our wide range of malts, baking mixes and ingredients to create innovative products responding to consumer demands from gluten-free via vegan and allergen-free through to ancient grains and many more.

Coopland & Son has been a valued long-time partner of IREKS in the U.K. Together, we have successfully worked on adapting existing and developing innovative baking products. We would like to thank Coopland & Son for their trust and look forward to continuing working successfully together for many more years to come. www.ireks.co.uk

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COOPLANDS AND SONS

Youngs says. “We modelled organic growth and acquisitions as possible scenarios and identified a company structure with resilience beyond one sales channel.”

Indeed, Cooplands has widely diversified its offering to include the largest fleet of Food to Go vans in the market, as well as cafes, shops, and they are also working on developing

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retail partnerships with other organisations.

“Investing in talent internally and bringing in new skills & capabilities is important as well. We’re working on that at the moment to make the business stronger.”

Youngs insists that these achievements would not be possible without Cooplands’ partners and without understanding its customers.

“THE CHALLENGE IS MAKING SURE WE MAKE SMART DECISIONS AT THE RIGHT TIME AS WE GROW.” BUSINESSFOCUSMAGAZINE.COM

COOPLANDS AND SONS

“We value strong relationships with our suppliers, service providers and partners, we know we are only as strong as they are,” says Youngs.

“ONE OF THE FIRST THINGS YOU NEED TO DO WHEN YOU COME IN TO LEAD A BUSINESS WITH AMBITION, IS TO UNDERSTAND THE HEALTH OF YOUR BRAND.”

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“We have conducted detailed consumer research of what our customers think of us and their mindset. One of the first things you need to do when you come in to lead a business with ambition is to understand the health of your brand. I am very pleased with the result.”

Cooplands most valuable partner, however, remains its own people, and Youngs is passionate about having them involved in the company at every level.

“We are a people-powered business and will be prioritising building excellent two-way internal communication enabled by a new communication system launching this year,” Youngs says.

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■ Shopfitting ■ Refurbishment ■ Interior Fit Out ■ Bespoke Joinery ‘We are pleased to be entrusted with Coopland & Son’s shopfitting and bespoke joinery installations and wish them continued success with their expansion programme.’

3P Contract Services Ltd 80 Commercial Street, Scarborough, YO12 5EW Tel: 01723 366564 Email: 3pcontracts@gmail.com

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COOPLANDS AND SONS

Youngs also points out the importance of developing their employment brand to become an employer of choice.

“WE ARE A PEOPLE-POWERED BUSINESS AND WILL BE PRIORITISING BUILDING EXCELLENT TWO-WAY INTERNAL COMMUNICATION ENABLED BY A NEW COMMUNICATION SYSTEM LAUNCHING THIS YEAR.” RETURN, RECOVER AND REGENERATE

Of course, a key challenge in recent months has been how to deal with the consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent lockdown.

From the beginning, Youngs was determined to keep the business running.

“We had to shut down parts of the business, our cafes, our vans and our city-centre shops, but what I was determined to do is try to stay open and function through the pandemic because all the models show if you continue to trade, even in a shrunken size and capacity, you’re more likely to come out the other side quicker and stronger,” she says. “So we kept two-thirds of the business open. We were quite agile, we had three things that governed our decisions; the Safety of Staff, Serving the Community and Sustaining the business.

I am sure we made mistakes, there is no handbook for a global pandemic, but we worked constantly to make the

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COOPLANDS AND SONS

right decisions as the situation evolved.”

To keep functioning through the pandemic Cooplands put in safety measures across all its production sites, including Perspex screens, keeping staff two metres apart, providing employees with masks, one-way systems & temperature checking.

“In shops, we changed operational procedures, provided them with masks, we implemented social distancing in shops and had Perspex screens in place before any of the supermarkets did,” Youngs says.

“Across the business, we changed many ways of working and it still fills me with admiration today how our teams across the business adjusted and took their own initiative.”

Our regulatory partners in

the fields of employment law and health and safety law played an important role in helping us to interpret the continually changing and evolving government advice and legislation”.

However, Youngs quickly realised that simply keeping the business functioning wasn’t enough.

“Within three days of lockdown we added to our operating model,” she says.

“We started sourcing staple items like pasta, rice beans, meat, cheese, fruit, veg etc and developed our online capability for ordering food parcels for the community delivered straight to the door because a lot of vulnerable people were unable to get supermarket order slots or leave their home.

“IT’S BEEN A CHALLENGING TIME BUT HAS SHOWN THAT WE CAN BE AGILE AND RESILIENT.”

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COOPLANDS AND SONS

We delivered over 1,200 food parcels. We asked our lorry drivers, who deliver to our shops, for volunteers. They delivered food parcels out into the community within 15 miles of each of our three production sites.”

It’s a project Cooplands put into action with no time to waste.

“That’s something we adjusted and adapted and had in place in five days,” she says.

“We also donated to care homes and hospitals and gave

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a 20% discount for NHS and emergency workers, including care workers who are often not included in these discounts.”

As businesses are beginning to look to the other side of the COVID-19 crisis, its clear Youngs is satisfied with what she’s learned about the business.

“It’s been a challenging time but has shown that we can be agile and resilient,” she says. “We’re proud of how resilient our team were, and as a lot of businesses have started to reopen after being

closed for a long period of time it’s challenging to get up and running again but my team have adapted to the new normal quickly and more easily. We are now trading in full again with cafes and Vans and the Town and City Centres shops open. The market will continue to challenge us and be unpredictable for some months to come but one thing I am sure of is that I have the team across all parts of the business to continue to grow it and achieve its potential”

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COOPLANDS AND SONS

WWW.COOPLANDS-BAKERY.CO.UK