DELI OF THE MONTH

MEET THE PRODUCER

Sofia Javed founded THE SINGING SPICE COMPANY – a certified organic spice blend brand with a focus on ethical sourcing – to reconnect with her family’s roots and enable her to recreate the authentic Punjabi meals she grew up with

WHAT’S NEW

What were you doing before you launched The Singing Spice Company?

I worked as a solicitor for 14 years, specialising in human rights and property law.

Why did you decide to launch the brand?

I wanted to recreate the authentic meals I had grown up eating. However, I struggled to find premium-quality Indian spice blends that were exceptional in taste and made using 100% clean ingredients. I wanted blends that were organic and tasted fresh, so I decided to create my own with the help of my mum, who has a wealth of knowledge that she brought with her when she emigrated to the UK from Punjab. donate a portion donate a portion of our profits to of our profits to charitable causes charitable causes and help feed and help feed deprived children deprived children around the world. around the world.

What is the biggest lesson you have learned since starting the business?

It is difficult to name just one, but the biggest is to ask for help when you need it. As founders, we place ourselves under so much pressure to do everything, but it’s important to ask for help. Learn the basics of what you’re trying to do, then find people with the right expertise. This saves time and lets you focus on what you’re good at.

What makes your spice blends stand out?

They are the UK’s first organic Indian spice blends. There are many on the market, but our unique selling point is that we ethically source our blends and use only the freshest, nutritionally rich, organic spices and use packaging that is either reusable, recyclable or compostable. We strive to create spice products that are not only Devon-based heritage and ancient grain good for people but also for the planet. Our millers Fresh Flour Company has launched business is built on the foundation of “eat well, a raft of new sourdough products made with feel well” as I believe food should nourish your the company’s cells and your soul, and that is achieved when six-year-old we help those less fortunate. That’s why we starter: Sourdough Digestive Biscuits (RRP £3.50, 250g) and Chocolate Digestive Biscuits (RRP. £3.95, 250g), Sourdough Branflakes (RRP £2.50, 350g) and two varieties of sourdough crackers – King Oyster Mushroom & Black Pepper and East Prawle Seaweed (RRP £3.25, 100g).

freshflour.co.uk

Why is it important for you to ensure your range is organic?

I wanted to recreate the meals I ate growing up as a child that had the same health benefits too, which led me to research spices, and I started taking a particular interest in organic spices as a way of offering optimum health benefits given their profile.

What is the best thing about being a small business?

Working on something you’re passionate about, knowing what you are doing is allowing you to grow as an individual and benefit your community. Having a small business is like being on a roller coaster. There are ups and downs, but if you’re prepared to enjoy the ride, it’s the most exhilarating feeling ever.

…and the worst?

Not having enough time. There’s always so much to do, so it’s very important to manage your time efficiently and plan accordingly. It can be a lonely place, so it’s important to surround yourself with those who will lift you up when you’re feeling low.

What’s next for The Singing Spice Company?

We want to work with more independent retailers as I feel that our products perfectly complement the fresh produce and meat found in farm shops, butchers and delis. We are also due to launch on Amazon soon, which we’re excited about. We have also recently successfully pitched to a national online retailer, so watch this space for the big reveal. Leytonstone-based family roastery Perky Blenders has released its annual Winter Blend – a yearly changing blend in special artist-designed packaging. Freshly roasted in East London, the Winter Blend is centered around rich fruit cake flavours. It comprises beans from the Guji, Ethiopia and Capon, Honduras. RRP £10/250g.

perkyblenders.com

Premium snack brand Made For Drink has partnered with English Heritage via their brand licensing programme to help champion England’s food producers through a new crisp range. English Truffle, Dorset Sea Salt, Malt Vinegar & Sea Salt and Unseasoned Yorkshire Potato Crisps are available in 40g and 150g packs (RRPs £1.25, £2.75).

madefordrink.com

In response to the growth of the plantbased market, better-for-you confectionery brand Flower & White has added two new vegan lines to its range. Chocolate Dipped Strawberry and Double M!lk Chocolate bars have an RRP of £14.49 for a 10 pack.

flowerandwhite.co.uk

C M Y CM MY CY CMY K

We are striving to create spice products that are good for people and planet Freshly Ground Sponsor advert 2016 print ready.pdf 1 16/08/2016 10:37

roasted in East London, the Winter Blend is centered around rich fruit cake flavours. It comprises beans from the Guji, Ethiopia and Capon, Honduras. RRP £10/250g.

perkyblenders.com

important for you to ensure your range is organic?

I wanted to recreate their brand licensing programme to help the meals I ate champion England’s food producers growing up as a through a new crisp range. English Truffle,

When Brian Wilson took the helm of Gillions of Crosby 34 years ago, it was a very different place. Once a local shop selling standard fare, the operation – now double its original size – is a delicatessen packed with a vast range of high-end lines alongside more recognisable brands, all underpinned by its traditional butchery.

Interview by Tom Dale

Moving with the times

“THERE WAS A KID in here the other week,” says Brian Wilson, owner of Liverpool-based deli Gillions of Crosby. “I overheard him saying to his dad, a regular: ‘They don’t half work that scruffy bloke behind the till hard. They should really give him a day off.’”

The “scruffy bloke” in question was Wilson himself. And given the veteran retailer’s 34 years at the helm of Gillions, that youngster might just be right – about the day off that is.

The shop has changed significantly since Wilson bought it from his former partner’s parents – one of whom was the daughter of the shop’s namesake – in 1987. Once a single unit with a fairly standard local shop offer and 9-5 opening hours, the shop began its transformation 10 years ago when Wilson increased the opening hours and switched the offer, blending convenience retailing with a vast fine food range, underpinned by its traditional butcher’s counter.

“The point I realised I had to do something different was when it hit me that retailing had changed, and I hadn’t,” says the owner. “Convenient one-stop shopping had become the only way forward.”

The shop’s regular weekend customers, who would call in for the quality butchery, were not visiting during the week. Wilson’s answer was to extend the opening hours from 8 until 8.

“I realised we needed to be there on our customers’ way home. And, to get them to stop, there was no point me selling them just mince if I didn’t have an onion and some fresh herbs – because if they wanted to make spaghetti Bolognese for tea that night, they needed it all.”

The supermarkets had moved on, he says, and so had consumers. “People wanted convenience – in offer and time.”

Gillions became a one-stop shop, catering for a vast array of customers by stocking its traditional cuts, a new range of high-end groceries and good fresh produce alongside a large selection of more recognisable brands.

Now, on the tightly packed shelves you will find supermarket favourites like Heinz Tomato Ketchup and Ambrosia Devon Custard alongside alternatives produced by

VITAL STATISTICS

Location: 128 College Road, Crosby, Liverpool, L23 3DP

Turnover change since COVID: +50% Number of lines: ~1,000

Retail floorspace: 1,000 sq ft

Tiptree, and Clotton Hall Dairy.

“We needed to be not a convenience store, but an up-market grocer that sells everything. A ‘convenient’, not a ‘convenience’ offering.”

It was this that led Wilson to launch a range of ready meals, produced by hand onsite. Always on the lookout for new ideas, he had noticed how customers in up-market food halls were still frequently buying preprepared meals. “People had become so lazy,” he says. “So, we needed to offer more than the meat and the ingredients.”

It made perfect sense, he says. Gillions already stocked everything to make the dishes, and the initiative helped reduce wastage.

Now, the shop’s team of two full-time chefs are cooking up around 100lbs of meat a day making the Gillions range of lasagne, chilli, soups and stews, including the firm local favourite, scouse.

It’s Bonfire Night the day FFD visits Gillions, and the family-packs of its hearty, warming dishes are doing a roaring trade. To lift this further, Lisa on the deli counter is offering customers extras – garlic bread for their chilli, beetroot and a fresh French stick for their scouse – a technique she has brought with her from her time working in sales in the travel industry.

“She’s introduced us to upselling,” says Wilson, “and it’s been a breath of fresh air. It’s spread through the team, everyone’s doing it now.”

It’s not a hard sell, says Wilson, but gently reminding the customer of something they already wanted. And this friendly, chatty interaction with customers is part of the Gillions way. The staff all appear to know the majority of customers and Wilson in particular frequently makes a point to break off the conversation with FFD to greet his regulars, many of whom have been shopping with him for generations.

Gillions is all about old-school customer service, says the owner, and doing everything in-house and by hand. And for that, you need a big team.

In the small shop of only 1,000 sq ft, seven full-time staff (not including Wilson) are supported by four part-timers and two Saturday employees, and they work hard, says Wilson.

He’s right. When FFD visits, the staff are all busy – cleaning, preparing, packaging, picking orders – but always with a smile for each other and the customers.

Having a tight work family is what helps give the level of service Wilson wants, he says, so staff wellbeing and retention is important. He cultivates this well – though it does not appear contrived. The team is palpably close, and Wilson is the natural patriarch of the Gillions family – Team G, as he calls them.

He may expect his staff to work hard, but it’s nothing he isn’t willing to do himself. Wilson is up at 5am every day to do his daily run to Liverpool’s fruit & vegetable market and then visit two wholesalers “with a smile behind the wheel of the van” before the shop opens.

His passion for retailing is evident; for the interaction with his customers and staff, for trying something new, and for providing the community with good food. He is happier on the shop floor than in the office and is a selfconfessed admin-phobe.

“I don’t know my average spend, I don’t know my weekly turnover – I haven’t got a clue. I don’t have time to be up here checking that sort of thing, and I don’t want to be either. I want to be down there talking and chatting,” he says.

MUST-STOCKS

Border Biscuits Dark Chocolate Gingers Mrs Darlington’s Lemon Curd Duskin Pure English Apple Juice Tiptree Strawberry Jam Gillions of Crosby honey Gillions of Crosby traditional pork sausages Gillions of Crosby lasagne Gillions of Crosby scouse Lancashire Crisps (Fiddlers) Butlers Farmhouse Cheeses Blacksticks Blue

Clotton Hall Fresh Luxury Custard

He may not be able to put his finger on the numbers offhand, but Wilson is in no doubt that COVID has been a huge boon to the business.

“It catapulted us into the limelight,” he says. “It was great.”

When the supermarket supply chains failed, Gillions’ didn’t. Wilson says people were on their phones telling their friends that he had pasta, rice and tinned tomatoes. “They’d come in and ask how long we’d been here. I’d tell them 34 years and it turned out they’d been regularly driving past but didn’t know about us. They said they love the shop, and they’ve stuck with us.”

Now, Gillions serves a huge range of customers, from middle-class young professionals, to his more elderly stalwarts and even young labourers looking for the “best sandwiches in the area”.

As well as ushering in a new clientele, the pandemic forced Wilson into operational changes that until coronavirus, he would have found inconceivable.

COVID forced Gillions into pre-packing everything on the butcher’s counter and preslicing the cured meats and cheeses on the deli. The supermarkets had changed the way people bought meat, and this new clientele – driven to the business by lockdowns –wanted that.

“You used to come up and ask for six sausages and two steaks, and the butcher would say, ‘that’s £20’,” he says, “but these days people are too embarrassed – they want to nose about for the cheaper ones. Now we’re doing the thinking for them.”

Sales on the butchery have more than doubled, and those customers with more unique preferences can still be accommodated as everything is done on-site. “We can work with people’s quirky preferences as Lisa on the deli knows them, she knows who wants what. We’ve got the best of both worlds.”

“If you’d asked me three years ago if I’d ever change that, I’d have said ‘no way’. I thought we’d change back after COVID, but sales are up so much, I’ve got no regrets.”

Ready meal sales are also up, as are orders for home delivery. Gillions had always offered delivery and collection – mostly for their older customers as a community-minded initiative – but during COVID, the demand was so high that Wilson had to take the phone off the hook.

“We just couldn’t service them,” he says. “We even had nursing homes ringing up. It was tough saying no to people, but we had our regulars to look after.”

Continuing with the ethos of continual upgrading and improvement, Wilson is still doing deliveries, but the old-school retailer is moving into the modern age by updating his e-commerce offer to save time and effort and capture yet another market.

He tells FFD that he doesn’t want to be that 70-year-old man pushing a trolley around the wholesalers but, given his passion for retailing, his customers may still be thinking Wilson looks like he needs that day off in 20 years’ time.

gillionsofcrosby.com

We needed to be not a convenience store, but an upmarket grocer that sells everything. A ‘convenient’, not a ‘convenience’ offering.