WILD PEACOCK PRODUCTS
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WILD PEACOCK PRODUCTS
Extraordinary WC Food Supplier Looks to Africa
PRODUCTION: David Napier
When Sue Baker started selling oysters from her car in 1991, no one could have predicted that her operation would grow to become one of the leading fine food suppliers in the Western Cape, with a reach across southern Africa. Wild Peacock Products is now the partner of choice for chefs when it comes to creation of exciting menus. Second-generation family leader, Ross Baker talks to Enterprise Africa about growing the company’s ever-increasing market share. www.enterprise-africa.net / 3
INDUSTRY FOCUS: FOOD & DRINK
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Few things have the ability to unite people like food. It has been described as more than means to nourish; it is also a means to unite hearts across the globe. In South Africa, food culture is as varied and diverse as the population, and draws on global influences. Quality food is undoubtedly a source of happiness. Cape Town-based Wild Peacock Products has recognised this association and, for almost three decades, has been helping customers source the best possible food products for their kitchens. This specialist distribution company was founded by Sue Baker and has grown to become one of the leading suppliers of food products to the Western Cape’s finest restaurants, delis, cafes, hotels and aspiring amateur chefs. Managing Director and secondgeneration family leader, Ross Baker tells Enterprise Africa about how the business has always been knitted into his fabric. “My sister and I grew up in the business – it has become a natural part of our lives. “I remember when my mother used
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to pick me up from school and we used to drive around delivering oysters. She had a passion for food and a love of oysters, and that remains today,” he says. Sue Baker, a trained primary school teacher, founded Wild Peacock through passion. Her husband had received a job offer in the Cape wine industry and the family uprooted from Jo’burg to head west. But arriving in the Winelands, Sue was unsure of her career path. “My folks always had a passion for food and wine,” says Baker. “My mother had no idea what to do and a friend suggested selling oysters in the Cape. She got in touch with a farm in Namibia and imported her first 200 oysters. She went to various people, mainly chefs, around the cape and introduced herself. If she managed to sell the oysters she used the money to buy more oysters. Over the years, she added more products and the list has grown alongside the customer base.”
In 1991, South Africa was a different place. Tourism and world-class eateries were not common. “There were probably not more than eight or ten restaurants in the Cape that used oysters or fine foods,” recalls Baker. Today, Cape Town is an international city that receives millions of visitors from all corners of the globe. “Food has grown to become a major market; in the southern part of the Western Cape there’s around 4000 restaurants. It’s a different market, there’s a lot of innovation and we have caught up with the rest of the world in terms of product usage.” BIG BASKET Wild Peacock’s journey moved from oysters to meats to cheeses to specialist unique items that must be imported. Today, it has a product range including more than 1000 individual items. “Oysters remain one of the main
// MY MOTHER USED TO BUILD RELATIONSHIPS WHEREVER SHE WENT. TODAY, THAT IS STILL THE BACKBONE OF THE BUSINESS //
WILD PEACOCK PRODUCTS
lines that we sell. We’ve built a live seafood holding facility where we can hold up to 15,000 oysters at any time. We have grown to now have around 80 staff and we are still growing,” says Baker. “It’s always been a home-based business but around four years ago we moved into a new facility which has seven different cold rooms and a bulk freezer for each different product category because different foods must be stored at different temperatures. We have three high-risk areas: one for fish processing, adding value by fish filleting and portioning; one for cheese cutting, where we cut a whole wheel into portions; and a cured meat slicing area where we can slice parma, iberico, prosciutto or similar on order for customers. “We have a fleet of refrigerated trucks and they run six-days a week, all over the Western Cape. We import goods from Europe including things like chocolate, caviar and seabass. We do try and use local produce – that is our priority. If we can’t source quality locally, or if it’s just not available, then we will import. Vanilla, for example, doesn’t grow in South Africa but there is a market and people want it, so we go and source it from Madagascar.” Wild Peacock does not deliver average or everyday bland. Products are top of the range and designed for those who can be creative with them. Clients of Wild Peacock are often those who are searching for something different. “We have a huge range of cheeses and we choose to work with artisanal cheese makers. 90% of the cheese makers we work with are in South Africa. “Our cured meats are primarily South African, but we do bring in some from Spain and Italy. “Poultry products from South Africa like duck, quail, rabbit, freerange fresh chicken and eggs are all of the highest quality. “We try and be innovative and sustainable with our basket, particularly our seafood,” says Baker. But the success of Wild Peacock is
Red Dru m, Redfish, Channel Bass, Spottail Bass, Ta mbour Rouge, Loup des Caraibes, Ombrine. Sciaenops ocellatus Y ear Round Whole fish and fillets. Our Red Dru m has a light, delicate flavor & a meaty texture. Great for grilling, broiling & sashimi.
GLOBALG.A.P GGN: 4056186701237
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INDUSTRY FOCUS: FOOD & DRINK
not just about having quality products. The company is recognised as an industry leader because of the knowledge it delivers with products and the relationships it builds with customers. FINE FOOD PARTNER “My mother used to build relationships wherever she went. Today, that is still the backbone of the business,” admits Baker. “We try and focus on quality, and that is not the easiest thing to sell, especially when people are price sensitive. “We try and sell information and a relationship through our staff. Our people are required to know about our products and they should always know more about the product than the customer does. Companies that truly lead industries are innovators, so we are trying to be different all the time.” For years this has been a cornerstone of the business. Regularly
Ross Baker Managing Director
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Wild Peacock brings in industry specialists to talk to its customers about innovative ideas for products. In April and August, Wild Peacock hosted a number of clients for seafood trade events where the company displayed its products range and showcased what is possible with a little ingenuity. “We like to bring people to the customers who can talk about the product and who can create relationships in the way that my mother started the business,” says Baker. “We sell our products with information. We have people who are specialists in their fields. For example, we will send our pastry chef out to advise clients on how to best use our products. “We have a range of special technical skills and we are constantly trying to train people and move them up through the ranks. We’ve had people start as cleaners who have moved to
Kim Brackenridge Meat, poultry & charcuterie Brand Manager
become order pickers, and then heads of departments in the warehouse or on the farm. “Our slogan is ‘for the love of food’ and everyone here is a lover of food. We are essentially a distributor/importer/ wholesaler but we try to add value where we can. With fish for example, we buy it in, scale it, fillet it, vac pack it, and make it saleable.” CARVING A NICHE In the future, the Baker family hopes to take Wild Peacock forward through the same strategy that has seen it grow to where it is today. Specifically, growing the product basket on offer, reaching into new areas, and building relationships with new types of client. “We recently started a micro-cress farm. We put in a small tunnel and we put in a few pea shoots which eventually grew to a bigger range. We then added
Matthew Christian Wild Peacock Farming Manager
WILD PEACOCK PRODUCTS
// WE WOULD LIKE TO EXPORT TO AS MANY AREAS AS POSSIBLE. WE ALREADY SEND PRODUCTS TO NAMIBIA AND ZAMBIA, AND WE ARE EXPLORING OPPORTUNITIES IN PLACES LIKE ST HELENA // second and third tunnels and we are about to put in a new 300m2 tunnel so there is a lot of growth with micro herbs,” explains Baker. Micro herbs have been around in culinary circles for a long time. They have been grown and exported from South Africa for more than two decades and Wild Peacock is feeling the demand for these products. “We just started with sprouts in the same environment and we have plans to also grow mushrooms. That range is only two years old but is growing nicely and we are planning to more capital into that. We have partnered with other farmers – organic micro veg farmers – for whom
Jac Kolver Pastry Chef & Pastry Brand Manager
we are now selling products.” In terms of customer base, Baker points out that the business is built on supplying quality products to those that can make use of them in the right way. But he is quick to say that the company would not reject different types of customer and always looks to please where possible. “The biggest portion of our client base is restaurants whether they are stand alone or part of a hotel – we deal with chefs, professional or non-professional. We don’t supply supermarkets but we do supply specialist delis and small retailers. We want people to appreciate the products we grow and
Sarah Baker Sales Manager & Cheese Brand Manager
the quality we are able to source. “If a big name came to us and said they wanted our products for their shelves, we would adjust our business to support that. It’s certainly an area we have spoken about growing into in the future. We are trying to support the home customer by making products available to order and deliver. We try not to say no to business and we try to keep everyone happy where we can,” he says. Traditionally strong in the Western Cape, but also with presence in Gauteng and KZN, the journey of Wild Peacock will not stop in South Africa. Baker suggests that in the future, significant growth could come from sub-Saharan markets.
Sue Baker Founder
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INDUSTRY FOCUS: FOOD & DRINK
// IF A BIG NAME CAME TO US AND SAID THEY WANTED OUR PRODUCTS FOR THEIR SHELVES, WE WOULD ADJUST OUR BUSINESS TO SUPPORT THAT // “We do want to achieve big growth rates in the next five years and we see a big part of that coming from the SADC markets. “We would like to export to as many areas as possible. We already send products to Namibia and Zambia, and we are exploring opportunities in places like St Helena. Also, with a number of our imported brands, we are the sole agency for all SADC countries and we want to utilise that to build a market. Africa is one of the few growing markets and there is a lot of potential.” FAVOURABLE CONDITIONS? Unlike the fertile environment in which Wild Peacock produces its quality veggies, the South African economy has not been a hospitable home for growing businesses in the last few years. Off the back of a global economic slowdown, compounded by disruptive local factors, South Africa’s growth has been stunted. For many businesses, this has caused a
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real bump in the road. But for established organisations like Wild Peacock, it’s about adapting to overcome challenges. “You just have to find your way of moving forward,” says Baker. “We are a company that has been around for 27 years and those challenges have been around for longer than 27 years. We grow every year and we adapt every year. We know we will never fully escape those issues - what’s the fun without the challenges!” Asked if he believes the local economic climate will turn around, creating a more predictable environment for business growth, Baker suggests he is confident. “There is a lot of positive sentiment in the country thanks to the installation of a new President. People are generally more positive and that is a very important thing as positive sentiment drives positive markets. “The effect of the economy comes in lags. The cost of living is very high at the
moment and that is because of the lag from the previous government and their inefficiency. The current President has a massive job on his hands but he is taking the bull by the horns and looking for a fix. It doesn’t happen overnight so they have to keep going with what they’re doing until the lag is over. I have a lot of faith that the economy will turn around. We have a very strong country in Africa and that will help us to rebuild.” He says there has been no material impact on the company as a result of a slower economy, but the effect has been felt across the industry through a slightly slower tourist market. However, “we have continued to grow so we are doing something right.” FOODIE FUTURE Now in second-generation Baker family hands, there is no suggestion that growth of this business, born out of hard work and passion, will slow. “My mother is still involved but not
WILD PEACOCK PRODUCTS
as much as she used to be. She comes in everyday and remains the face of the business, but it is now a family business and we are very family orientated in the way we operate,” says Baker. “While we don’t yet have plans for third generation leadership, it is at the back of our minds – not many businesses anywhere in the world make it through three generations.” The key ingredients in the Wild Peacock success story will remain the
// FOOD IS A PRODUCT THAT IS DIFFICULT TO SELL OVER THE PHONE – YOU WANT TO BE ABLE TO SMELL AND SEE FOODS. YOU BUY FOOD WITH YOUR SENSES AND THAT’S WHY WE WANT TO GET PEOPLE INTO THE STORE //
same as the original recipe – build strong relationships, add value, work to family values, and consistently deliver quality. “Competition is rife and is growing” admits Baker “but we are consistently innovative and the best at what we do. We have a lot of competition who specialise in one area but in terms of the basket we do, there is not many who could match us.” Wild Peacock is also set apart thanks to its warehouse facility, which the company moved into three years ago. This state-of-the-art facility has everything the company needs to store, prepare and distribute its products, and has the added benefit of a space which has been set aside as a café/wine bar/ coffee stop/demo area. “We had the food emporium in Stellenbosch for six years; it was a retail shop, restaurant and wine bar. When we moved into a new warehouse three years ago, we made a provision for space for a new shop and we closed the store in Stellenbosch. We changed the dynamics and its now a factory shop. It is no longer a restaurant but we do still have a coffee bar and we will soon be including wine
on the menu once again. We want to create a foodie hub that is a hybrid store where we can showcase our products. We have many professional chefs who come in to collect orders and we want to be able to upsell and display ideas. Food is a product that is difficult to sell over the phone – you want to be able to smell and see foods. You buy food with your senses and that’s why we want to get people into the store.” With the unrivalled range of products supplied by Wild Peacock, the offering delivered by this industryleader will be enhanced as more people get involved in foodie culture, and as professionals look for more opportunities to differentiate themselves. This is a business that has positioned itself as one of the strongest around, adding value throughout the value-chain. With a Baker at the helm, Wild Peacock will undoubtedly continue to lead the way for many years to come.
WWW.WILDPEACOCK.CO.ZA
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