Doug Gilchrist
Head of Supply Chain – Catering
Gather & Gather
Bristol, UK
Q: Gather & Gather is the trading name for Mitie’s high-end catering business in the UK. Could you describe the company for our readers and explain how it operates?
A: We rebranded as Gather & Gather just over a year ago to create a different identity for the business and a stand-alone catering offer within Mitie. We operate right across the UK as well as having a small footprint in Ireland. Gather & Gather offers catering supplies for in-house dining, coffee and brew bars, fine dining and hospitality events, plus on-site vending. We have over 300 different clients across the UK and Ireland.
Q: What was the reason for the re-brand as Gather & Gather?
A: The lack of identity really prompted the re brand. We needed to freshen things up as we were known as Mitie Catering Services but we wanted to really position ourselves so that catering, which is very subjective, stood out and was supported by our other services rather than the other way around. We also wanted a brand that stood up for our values and what we’re about.
Q: Talking of values, your strapline is ‘Bringing food and people together’. Can you explain what that means and why it’s so important to your company?
A: The one thing that we’ve all got in common is that we all eat and in the workplace we all gather together, whether it’s in a cafe, restaurant or hospitality area. We as a company source great products and ingredients from the UK and further afield. So, when you think about it gathering products and gathering people fits quite well.
Q: Are your values and your interest in bringing food and people together what makes Gather & Gather stand out?
A: What makes us different is that we like to do things a bit differently to everyone else! Gather & Gather doesn’t want to be the status quo. We respect that fact that we are part of the Mitie group but we love fresh ideas and I think the vision that we get from Gather & Gather’s managing director Allister Richards helps us to break the mold. We really try to deliver what customers want and while we have processes and due diligence to follow we are also given a remit to mix it up a bit.
Q: Can you give an example of how Gather & Gather mixes things up?
A: We recently ran a produce tender over the last six months which required us to go out to markets across the UK. On conclusion we appointed a company called Watts Farms in Essex so that we could work with a grower and a distributor. We’re now working closely together – they really understand our business as well as what our clients are trying to do. They’ve been out to visit our clients and to meet with the chefs there, while we’ve been to visit their farms to see the products for ourselves rather than just using distributors to bring the product in. Another example of mixing things up is having own head of coffee development because we feel that getting the right mix of coffee and food cultures is so important to driving our overall catering offer.
Q: Apart from the produce tender, what other developments has Gather & Gather made recently in relation to fresh fruits and vegetables?
A: We’ve employed George Beach from Mudwalls Farm in Warwickshire. George works with me in procurement as a supply chain category expert for fresh produce. We’ve invested in George because he brings a great deal of expertise in the produce industry that has improved our ability to source as well as improved our specifications and the quality and consistency of quality of our products. We’ve also been able to offer products to our chefs that probably hadn’t been forthcoming beforehand. George has been in the produce industry for many years so he has good networks of contacts. He’s also been a buyer and a customer, and he gets the Gather & Gather model in terms of our flexibility and keenness for a challenge. I think that’s a big shift for Gather & Gather as a company.
Q: Are you happy with the way the Gather & Gather brand is progressing since it was launched?
A: Yes, it’s been a great success. Over the last three years we’ve trebled in size and been well received. Our long-term sourcing model focuses on eight regions across the UK and Ireland so we have the remit and the ability to source regionally and get fantastic products from great suppliers within those areas which seems to work very well. So we’ve had great growth but we’re always up for new challenges. We’ve also done a lot of work with our street-food van, Delphine, so there are a lot of good things happening at the company at the moment.
Q: Gather & Gather clearly puts great effort into delivering a bespoke service for its customers. Can you explain how you achieve that?
A: I think our bespoke service is our key differentiator. When we operate with the big players in the market the message we get back from the sales team is that they don’t want a one-size-fits-all service. They don’t want to be told no – they want what’s new, they want variation, they want a bit of flexibility and they want us to deliver exactly what they need. At Gather & Gather our hands aren’t tied and our deliveries don’t all come in the back of one lorry, so our customers like our sourcing approach.
Q: How challenging is it to tailor your offer to each individual customer that you work with?
A: When the requirements are very specific then yes it’s challenging but actually what we really want is good quality, regional produce no matter where it’s grown. The client likes a regional message to its offer too because they like to know where their products are from, so provenance is important to us. As such, we don’t have one supplier for every client.
Q: How important is the fresh produce industry to Gather & Gather’s operations? Do fresh fruits and vegetables represent a large share of the food that you supply?
A: Fresh produce accounts for about 12% of what we buy overall. It’s very important for us because our healthier menus, especially our under 500 calories menu and our set menus, encompass fresh fruits and vegetables.
Q: Do you see potential to increase supplies of fresh produce within the catering sector in the UK?
A: We’re always really keen to talk to companies that are suppliers or growers and who are interested in working with us. Part of the Gather & Gather model is to do things differently. We never close access to the supply chain and think that’s it set for a fixed period of time. We’re really keen to get new products and seasonal products into the supply chain and quickly. We’re very interested in small to medium enterprises (SMEs), diverse suppliers, etc. We like to mix things up, so we’re happy to offer them our support too.
Q: Are the companies that Gather & Gather is supplying demanding more fresh fruits and vegetables?
A: Fruits and vegetables are part of the whole fresh food offer so yes demand is increasing. With the changes to allergen labeling legislation in the UK at the end of this year customers are far more interested in what they’re eating, where it’s from, how good it is for them, etc.
Q: You mentioned that Gather & Gather is keen to work with more suppliers. What would you say to a grower or distributor of fresh produce?
A: Well, obviously due diligence, food safety and a robust supply chain are important to us. But we also love suppliers that love to be challenged; those who are interested in not just what we demand and those who are keen to see how their business can evolve. Good suppliers will love that challenge for themselves, rather than just doing the same old thing all the time. It’s also key for us to get the right cultural fit. We’re open to innovation, ideas and initiatives because the more solutions you can put in front of the client the better – that’s why Gather & Gather has been so successful. So, the more proactive they are, the more likely we are to work with them.
Q: Gather & Gather talks about the need for responsible, ethical and sustainable sourcing. Why is it so important to you and how do you go about achieving that?
A: It’s important to the company because we have a very strong sustainability culture at Mitie in terms of how we need to be responsible and ethical, plus, at the end of the day, it’s our reputation. Part of how we achieve that comes down to a lot of our key suppliers being issued a sustainability audit prior to us committing to any agreement for supply. We also look at their standards and accreditations to ensure that we understand their supply chain. At Gather & Gather we also have our own Sustainability Working Group, which I chair, that looks into the doing the right thing around everything we supply in terms of the food itself, its nutrition, our people or our supply chain.
Q: How is the foodservice industry in the UK performing as a whole at the moment?
A: There are certainly signs that the business is picking up after the last few challenging years. Clients are starting to look for a better offer with more benefits in terms of health and nutrition. They are now prepared to spend a little bit more for healthy products which will benefit their staff, whereas in the last few years it was very much focused on cost.
Q: What do you feel are the strengths, weaknesses and opportunities for the UK foodservice industry?
A: The strength is that we’re working in a fantastic market where food has never been so high profile. Everyone’s interested; everyone wants to know the provenance of their food and how its sourced, as well as its health benefits, etc. The weakness would be if companies in the industry take a one-size-fits-all approach to their customer base, whereas we genuinely recognize that every client has different needs and objectives. One opportunity is to come and work with us! Come and talk to Gather & Gather; we’re really keen to understand what’s new and how we can add value to your business.
Q: What are the current trends in terms of demand on the UK foodservice market? What are your customers asking you for in particular?
A: They’re looking for ways to improve the welfare and output of their staff and teams. They want to know if our menus will help their staff to be healthier, help them to enjoy working for the company and help make them to be more productive.
Q: How do you go about ensuring that your menus make staff healthier, happier and more productive?
A: First of all by talking to the customer and really understanding what it is that they want. We look at the demographic, the office type (warehouse or call centre for example), the work culture, the lunch time allowance, etc. Then our operators, chefs and nutritionists get in front of the customers to find out what they are really trying to achieve. The customers are not just looking for a service; they are looking for advice and to find out how we can help them.
Q: In view of your desire to not offer more of the same and instead excite consumers with innovative and interesting food, do you feel that Gather & Gather is one step ahead of the trends?
A: I certainly think that we are ahead of other catering companies when I look at their food offer. I’m in the fortunate position to visit our distributors’ premises so I sometimes see what our competitors are offering. Whether we’re supplying nice salads, wraps, hot dishes or a bit of street food I’d like to think that Gather & Gather’s offer is exciting. Plus our sales would also indicate that we’re going in the right direction.
Q: What are Gather & Gather’s plans going forward, and especially in relation to the fresh produce trade?
A: We’re certainly very ambitious to continue growing the business. That may well mean that we look to move into other areas of the foodservice industry rather than just the traditional business and industry (B&I) foodservice sectors. We’d like to get closer to the real source of our products too. At the moment we’re still buying our products from growers but we’d love to own some of that supply chain in time. Overall, there has been some really good progress in the last eight months and we want to build on that.
Source: Perishable News
