Such a fantastic couple of days, thank you for inviting us Alex James and Louise McNutt! It really feels now that the last couple of years of hard work are coming together! We can't wait to see the progress over the next few months.
Bread and Jam. I've followed you for years but finally this week I made it to Bread & Jam Festival for the first time after hearing so much about it... and it didn't disappoint. I met some amazing people, and heard from a massive range of speakers from founders and entrepreneurs, to buyers and industry experts. Each one with a brilliant story, snippet of wisdom or piece of inspiration to share. Common theme - love your buyer, but boy are they hard to pin down! I particularly enjoyed listening to Tezing's Huib van Bockel share his journey from the Red Bull days to founding and building the Tenzing brand and challenger to the big energy drink brands we know today - "Your craft should lead you to your product." Gym Kitchen's Segun Akinwoleola shared his journey of unwavering determination to succeed in retail, which took a few attempts (years) before his breakthrough finally came with Asda. His important message about diversity in retail as well as his customer testimonials were powerful and proof of how the brand is changing peoples lives. The talented Julie Mills' guide to building a killer pitch deck was awesome! The room (a big one) was literally packed with people from end to end and it was no wonder, as she used so many brilliant examples of her clients following the guide to win listings. Great to see her showcasing some well known Welsh brands on the stand as well! And as always, thank you to my colleagues Nia Ball and Nerys Adams who supported our clients expertly along the way by planning, prepping and pep talking prior to pitches, and our lovely clients themselves (Mari Arthur - Tetrim Teas, Richard Abbey - Do Goodly Foods Ltd, Gareth Griffith-Swain - Fungi Foods, Philippa Galway - Flavour Moments ... it was great speaking to you all) - diolch yn fawr! #Breadjam24 #cywain #mentera