Sales have soared at the Manchester-based food business behind the Paul Hollywood, St Pierre and Baker Street brands with the company – which secured a multimillion-pound investment during the year – eyeing further growth.

St Pierre Groupe recently rebranded from Carrs Foods. It was established in 1986 as part of a large European bakery group. For the year to 31 December 2018, the company reported turnover of £69.5 million compared to £49.4 million the prior period. Moreover, pre-tax profits also increased from £5.2 million to £6.9 million.

Branded products make up most of the business, with the St Pierre line sold in the UK, Ireland and throughout the US, with the latter being its strongest market for growth.

Baker Street is sold primarily to the convenience and cash and carry sectors. It expanded during the year with a new wellness offer – which includes breads made with rye, nuts and seeds in a bid to fill a gap in the UK market for longer life products with healthier attributes.

The Paul Hollywood Ready to Bake line is to grow in the comping year, with new products lined up for new categories.

“Everyone at the St Pierre Groupe has worked very hard to build us into a fast-growing global bakery business and we are truly proud of our achievements. It’s been an incredibly exciting year for the business. We’ve not only posted very strong financial results, but we were also recognised with a Queen’s Award for Enterprise in International Trade – having become one of the ten biggest bakery brands in the US,” said Jeremy Gilboy, founder of St Pierre Groupe.

“We’re planning on more of the same great progress in the next year as we concentrate efforts on increasing distribution in the UK, growing internationally and continuing to invest in our brand and marketing to keep on growing sales.,” he added.

Earlier this year, the group secured a £6.7 million investment from BGF and partner Lloyds Bank, facilitated by Grant Thornton. The funds were earmarked for accelerating international growth.

Elsewhere, former Tyrrell chief executive David Milner joined as non-executive chairman.

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