Clipper Teas named south west's growth business of the year at food industry awards
23 September 2016
Clipper Teas of Beaminster, Dorset won the Regional Growth Business Award for the South West at last night's industry-leading Food and Drink Federation Awards. The ceremony, held at London's The Brewery and hosted by television personality Hardeep Singh Kohli, celebrated businesses and industry professionals from across the food and drink supply chain. The category was sponsored by Grant Thornton LLP.
Clipper Teas produces a range of high quality teas, coffees and hot chocolate. Ever since being established in 1984 with just two chests of the finest Assam teas, Clipper has prided itself on being innovative. It was the first brand to launch green tea into UK supermarkets and has led the way in green, white and organic teas and infusions, and in 1994 it became the UK's first tea to carry the Fairtrade mark. Today Clipper Tea is sold in 50 countries across the world, but still blends and packs all its teas on site in Dorset, where it has close to 100 employees.
Clipper is now the number one premium tea in The Netherlands, and in the past 18 months the business has opened new markets in countries as diverse as South Korea, Chile, Estonia, Latvia, Canada, Saudi Arabia, UAE, and the Philippines.
To meet the increasing demands of this growing export business and new markets that it has entered, Clipper has invested £2m in its Beaminster site and aims to invest further in the years ahead. This will enable the business to create a world class centre of manufacturing excellence in tea production in West Dorset.
Ian Wright, Director General, FDF, said: “The FDF Awards truly are a badge of excellence and Clipper Tea's success in the Growth Business category demonstrates the huge potential of food and drink businesses across the UK. Clipper Teas is clearly a business on the move, growing in new overseas markets, while also continuing to invest in its base in Dorset. I congratulate it on its win and wish it continued success for the future.”
Trefor Griffith, Head of Food and Beverage at category sponsors Grant Thornton UK LLP commented: “Grant Thornton is delighted to once again be supporting the Growth Business category for this year's Food and Drink Federation Awards. We're committed to building a vibrant economy by helping dynamic businesses like The Bread Factory unlock their potential for growth. We work with leading food and drink firms across the UK, so we're delighted to be able celebrate the contribution businesses like The Bread Factory make to their region, the manufacturing sector and the UK as a whole.”
More information
Event photos are available on FDF's Flickr page
The 2017 FDF Awards will launch in November 2016.
Notes for editors
- The Food and Drink Federation (FDF) is the voice of the food and drink manufacturing industry – the UK's largest manufacturing sector.
- View the winners' case studies
- Grant Thornton UK LLP is one of the world's leading organisations of independent assurance, tax and advisory firms.
- Clipper is a British, fairtrade tea company based in Beaminster, Dorset founded in 1984. In 1994, they were one of the first companies in the UK to receive the Fairtrade Mark. It is the UK's sixth biggest tea brand and export sales represent 20% of group turnover with products currently sold in 45 countries.
Contact Matthew Evans, Corporate Affairs Division, at: Matthew.Evans@fdf.org.uk, or (0) 20 7420 7152.
