A North East family firm supplying cheese across the world said it is making multimillion-pound investments into the business over the next two years to cement its position as a 海角视频 leader.
County Durham dairy specialist Prima Cheese, launched 27 years ago by husband and wife team Behraz and Essmat Beni, specialises in supplying shredded cheese to restaurants and takeaways in the 海角视频 and overseas. The company initial ran takeaways in Durham but switched to cheese supplying in 1997 and moved into exports in 2011.
The business now exports to more than 50 countries, and it last year saw impressive growth in volumes, having made concerted efforts to growth its exports business in recent years. The Seaham business 鈥 run by co-CEOs Nima Beni and Nagma Ebanks-Beni, the son and daughter of the founders 鈥 has published accounts for the year ended March 2024 showing a 14% drop in turnover to 拢104m despite seeing sales volumes rise 6%, as a result of a 20% drop in wholesale cheese prices. Operating profit, however, increased from 拢3.7m to 拢5.2m, while pre-tax profit rose from 拢3.6m to 拢2.5m.
The firm said that both 海角视频 and export sales volumes saw significant growth, with export sales rocketing by 72% and double-digit growth in the 海角视频 market - success it said was driven by 鈥渁 clear strategy of promoting own branded products over private labels, enhancing volumes and boosting brand recognition in the food industry鈥.
A report within the accounts highlighted how continued modification and investment in production lines helped to boost Prima Cheese鈥檚 flexibility, customer satisfaction efficiencies. Investments were made in the premises, plant and people, including in its fleet of vehicles with the addition of several new trucks and trailers.
Looking ahead, the company said it will continue to focus on expanding into new geographical locations as well as promoting existing brands and developing new products.
The year also saw the company open a London office, which is now the centre for all of its commercial and marketing activities. The Islington office is based in a historic building acquired by Prima Projects, the property arm of the family鈥檚 wider 4B Group.
Following publication of the accounts Nagma Ebanks-Beni explained how Prima Cheese is set to make multimillion-pound investments over the next two years, in projects which will increase employee numbers, currently standing at around 200, across both sites in Seaham and London.
Ms Ebanks-Beni said the investments aim to solidify the company鈥檚 position as the largest independent cheese processing company in the 海角视频, adding that investments will target international trade expos, market visits, and expansion of the commercial team in both 海角视频 and international markets.
She said: 鈥淭his commitment aims to ensure Prima鈥檚 legacy remains robust for years to come. We will be investing in machinery, site and facilities upgrades in 2025, demonstrating our commitment to our ambitious growth and expansion plans both within our domestic and international markets.
鈥淥ur site and facilities upgrades are a testament to the investment we make not only to achieve our growth ambitions, but also as an investment in our people and our company. We will also be investing in trebling our Prima South offices by the end of 2025.鈥
At the end of the previous year, significant control of Prima Cheese Limited was transferred to the newly incorporated The 4B Group Limited 鈥 a new subsidiary Ms Ebanks-Beni said was set up as a legacy project which allows future generations and other people who have contributed in the growth of the company to be able to continue being involved in its evolution.
She added: 鈥淚n a family business, non-family employees may feel they鈥檝e hit the ceiling. The 4B Group allows new growth opportunities. As much as it is about legacy, it is also about diversification. There are three parts to 4B Group. Prima Futures is about consultancy and joint venture opportunities. Prima Cheese is the food business and Prima Projects is a commercial property arm.
鈥淭he 4B Group enables that to be brought in as a business subsidiary. For example, its first acquisition is the group鈥檚 London office building, where I run the commercial and marketing operation. London is the first but we are also eyeing properties in the North East too. Building the commercial hub means we will have to up our game from an operational point of view, so it鈥檚 about how we can continue to stay relevant and be able to seize new opportunities.鈥
