Symington's on the gravy train with £10m investment

Leeds-based food manufacturer Symington’s has secured a £10m investment package from Yorkshire Bank Corporate & Structured Finance and other investors to fund its launch into the gravy market.

The funding will provide a platform for the development of Symington’s new range of products including gravy manufactured under the Aunt Bessie brand. The gravy market is estimated to be worth an estimated £139m.

Yorkshire Bank first invested in the company in 2007 when it supported a Hermes Private Equity-backed buyout. Since then, Symington’s has doubled its turnover to approximately £90m. In this latest deal, the bank is investing alongside management shareholders and the private equity fund, which is now managed by a division of Bridgepoint.

Kevin Hambling, director of Yorkshire Bank Corporate & Structured Finance in Leeds, said: “Symington’s has been producing high quality dried foods for almost two decades and now manufactures under well-known brand names such as Golden Wonder, Crosse & Blackwell and Ainsley Harriott. The gravy range will complement these existing products and has already been listed by most of the UK’s major retailers. This latest investment package will provide Symington’s with the funding it requires to develop the product and gain a significant stake in this part of the food market.”