Geary’s Bakery has received a significant investment from the Unsworth Family, which will support the company’s ambitious growth plan.
The investment will see the Unsworth Family take a majority stake in the 113-year-old family-owned artisanal craft bakery.
Jason Geary will remain as Managing Director of the business, overseeing its development. Meanwhile, Rob Unsworth, will lead the business as Chairman, utilising his expertise in delivering against a top line growth plan of £60m in two years.
The company’s plan is to focus on innovating the category with the introduction of “world first” technology and a new plant.
The bakery, which claims to have introduced the now famous ‘bloomer’ and ‘bloomer in a bag’ to the category, has seen 65% growth over the last couple of years. It previously invested £15m into a new site at Glenfield which enabled the company to meet the exponential growth demand of its biggest customer, Aldi.
Unsworth commented: “We have been watching Geary’s for some years and saw a business that exceeded on quality, has first class facilities and delivered a strong sales growth. It was clear this was a business we wanted to be a part of. Our aim is to support the existing infrastructure and add value.
“We have an ambitious growth target over the next couple of years and together we are, nothing but confident, in achieving it.”
Geary added: “The business has seen a substantial turn in fortune over the last decade and in most recent years the investment ploughed into the company has ensured an enviable trajectory of growth. The new investment with the Unsworth Family, will enable our future plans to become a reality and we are excited about the partnership and this next chapter.”
Over the last 18 months, Geary’s has been working on developing its own brand of “high quality, affordable” breads. The Geary’s brand will be launched in early 2020 after securing its first listing with a “major retailer”.
