Finsbury Food Group

Name

Finsbury Food Group

Legal name

Finsbury Food Group Limited

Website

https://finsburyfoods.co.uk

Company type

Public

Founded year

2000

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

501–1,000 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Speciality Bakery Manufacturing

NAICS

Commercial Bakeries (311812), Bread and Bakery Product Manufacturing (31181), Bakeries and Tortilla Manufacturing (3118), Baked Goods Retailers (445291)

SIC

Bakery Products (2050)

akta.pro primary industry

Pastry, Cakes & Tortes Manufacturing (AFAKAAAB)

akta.pro secondary industries

Cupcake Shops (THAFAGAG), Cake Shops & Custom Celebration Cakes (THAFAFAC)

Keywords

• Bakery manufacturing
• Celebration cakes
• Foodservice bakery
• Free-from bakery
• Licensed branded cakes

Headquarters

HQ city

Cardiff

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices6 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Personnel, Supply Chain, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. B2B Retail Supply: Supplying bakery products to major multiple retailers including Tesco, Asda, Sainsbury's, Morrisons, Waitrose, and Co-op. Revenue generated through product supply agreements with major retailers.
2. Foodservice Supply: Supplying bakery products to hospitality, healthcare, education, quick-serve restaurants, and wholesale channels through Kara Foodservice brand and other sites.
3. Licensed Branded Products: Licensing partnerships with Disney, Warner Bros, Universal Pictures for celebration and gift cakes generating revenue through retail sales with royalty arrangements.
4. Direct-to-Consumer: DTC sales through acquired brands like Lola's Cupcakes and Flower & White, selling directly to consumers via retail, online, and foodservice channels.
5. Export: Export channels supplying bakery products to European markets, including operations in Poland and France.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels6 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Finsbury Food Group is a leading UK specialty bakery group that manufactures and supplies a broad portfolio of celebration cakes, sharing cakes, bread, rolls, morning goods, free-from baked goods, and licensed branded cakes through eight UK manufacturing sites plus European operations. The company supplies major UK multiple retailers, foodservice operators, wholesalers, and export markets, operating multi-site, multi-brand production covering Memory Lane Cakes, Kara Foodservice, Fletchers, Lightbody, Nicholas & Harris, Johnstone's Food Service, Ultrapharm, Ultraeuropa, Lees of Scotland, Lola's Cupcakes, and Flower & White.

Product overview

Finsbury Food Group is a leading UK speciality bakery manufacturer operating a multi-site, multi-brand portfolio across the UK and Europe. The company supplies a comprehensive range of bakery products including celebration cakes, sharing cakes, bread, buns, rolls, artisan breads, snacks, and free-from products to major UK retailers, foodservice operators, and export markets. The portfolio includes owned brands (Memory Lane Cakes, Kara Foodservice, Fletchers, Lightbody, Nicholas & Harris, Johnstone's Food Service, Ultrapharm, Ultraeuropa, Lees of Scotland) and acquired brands (Lola's Cupcakes, Flower & White). The company holds long-standing licensing agreements with Disney (20+ years), Warner Bros, Sega, Thorntons (20 years), and Universal Pictures, producing character-themed celebration cakes. Recent acquisitions include Lola's Cupcakes (August 2025) and Flower & White (May 2026). The group operates 11 manufacturing sites with approximately 3,400 colleagues and annual turnover of circa £450 million.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Memory Lane Cakes: Celebration cakes and sweet bakery products
• Fletchers
• Kara Foodservice
• Johnstone's Food Service
• Lightbody
• Nicholas & Harris
• Ultrapharm
• Ultraeuropa
• Lees
• Little Big Cake
• Lola's Cupcakes
• Flower & White
• Disney Licensed Brands
• Warner Bros Licensed Brands
• Thorntons Licensed Products
• Mary Berry Range

Quantifiable outcome

• 25 million hot cross bun packs produced in a year
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers15 records

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability1 record

Feature5 records

Partnerships

14 partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• Scottish Football AssociationminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 June 2026Partnership to create Scotland-themed cupcakes for World Cup 2026, featuring Scotland colours, logos, and packaging with Rampant Lion.
• English Football AssociationminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 June 2026Partnership to create England-themed cupcakes for World Cup 2026, featuring England colours, crests, and matchday-inspired designs.
• The Walt Disney CompanycoreOEM/ Whitelabel/ Licensing Partner · 7 May 202620-year licensing collaboration to develop celebration cakes inspired by Disney characters including Frozen, Lilo & Stitch, Moana, and Disney Pixar and Marvel universes. Finsbury creates showstopping celebration and gift cakes for retail distribution.
• Flower & WhitecoreOEM/ Whitelabel/ Licensing Partner · 1 May 2026Finsbury acquired 100% of Flower & White Ltd, a better-for-you snacking brand. Founders Leanne and Brian Crowther remain with company. Brand operates in DTC, retail, and foodservice channels.
• Celtic F.C.minorOEM/ Whitelabel/ Licensing Partner · 1 January 2026Football club licensing partnership for branded bakery products including celebration cakes.
• Rangers F.C.minorOEM/ Whitelabel/ Licensing Partner · 1 January 2026Football club licensing partnership for branded bakery products including celebration cakes.
• Liverpool F.C.minorOEM/ Whitelabel/ Licensing Partner · 1 January 2026Football club licensing partnership for branded bakery products including celebration cakes.
• Universal Pictures / Universal Products & ExperiencescoreOEM/ Whitelabel/ Licensing Partner · 1 November 202515-year partnership to create celebration cakes inspired by Universal films including Wicked, Minions, Jurassic World, Gabby's Dollhouse. Recently created Wicked half-and-half celebration cake.
• Lola's CupcakescoreOEM/ Whitelabel/ Licensing Partner · 1 August 2025Finsbury acquired majority stake in Lola's Cupcakes in August 2025, gaining DTC cupcake brand with manufacturing capability and direct-to-consumer presence.
• Nadiya HussainminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 16 July 2025FFG & Nadiya Hussain launched new branded cake range with Nadiya cakes shortlisted as finalist for The Grocer awards.
• Lees FoodscoreOEM/ Whitelabel/ Licensing Partner · 1 January 2023Acquired UK baker Lees Foods in £5.7 million deal, expanding presence in Scottish bakery market with Lees of Scotland brand.
• Costa CoffeecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 4 March 2021Partnership with Costa Coffee to expand BOSH! range, bringing plant-based and innovative cake products to Costa outlets.
• ThorntonscoreOEM/ Whitelabel/ Licensing Partner · 16 December 2020Extended 20-year partnership with Thorntons to develop branded chocolate cakes and confectionery-inspired bakery products.
• Mary BerrycoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 11 April 2017Partnership with Mary Berry to create a range of high-quality ready-to-eat cakes inspired by her recipes. Range includes celebration cakes, afternoon tea options, and various flavours from Mary's own recipe books.

Scale indicators14 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights7 records

Direct peers

• Lotus Bakeries: Belgian manufacturer of branded biscuits, waffles and natural snacks (Lotus Biscoff, Nākd, TREK). Comparable branded/licensed bakery confectionery model with growing better-for-you snacking exposure.
• Premier Foods plc: UK-listed branded and packaged food manufacturer (Mr Kipling, Cadbury cakes, Batchelors). Direct competitor to Finsbury in celebration cakes and ambient bakery supplied through the same major UK retailers and licensed brand model.
• Warburtons: UK's largest branded bakery, family-owned, focused on bread and morning goods. Comparable as a UK multi-site industrial baker serving the same major grocery multiples with bread-led portfolio.

Broad incumbents

• Flowers Foods: US-listed branded bakery (Nature's Own, Dave's Killer Bread, Wonder). Comparable listed branded bakery group operating multi-site manufacturing with DSD and retail distribution.
• Greggs plc: UK food-to-go bakery and QSR chain holding ~11% of food-to-go occasions. Comparable UK bakery leader that buys from Finsbury-adjacent suppliers and competes for the same consumer bakery spend.
• Aryzta AG: Swiss-listed global bakery group supplying breads, sweet baked goods and snacks to retail and foodservice in Europe and beyond. Closest European peer by commercial bakery model and customer base.
• McKee Foods (Little Debbie): US family-owned snack cake and cereal bar manufacturer (Little Debbie, Drake's). Comparable business model in licensed/branded single-serve celebration cakes and snack cakes for retail.
• Hostess Brands (now J.M. Smucker): Iconic US snack cake brand (Twinkies, Hostess CupCakes) serving the same celebration/snack cake occasion. Comparable brand-led cake portfolio in shared ambient bakery category.
• Associated British Foods (Kingsmill / ABF): FTSE 100 conglomerate owning Kingsmill, Allinson's and other UK baked goods brands. Comparable large-scale UK bread and bakery manufacturer distributed through major retailers.

Emerging players

• Free From Foods (European peer set, e.g. Dr. Schär): European gluten-free and free-from specialty bakery manufacturer. Directly comparable to Finsbury's Ultrapharm/Ultraeuropa dedicated free-from manufacturing capability.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Instagraminstagram.com/finsburyfoods
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/finsbury-food-group

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles9 records

Subsidiaries10 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors1 record

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A10 records

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Finsbury Food Group