What Jellybean Creative Solutions does

Jellybean Creative Solutions is an independent, employee-owned UK marketing agency founded in 1987 by Fiona Rickard and headquartered in Leatherhead, Surrey. The firm specializes in integrated food and drink marketing across three interlocking verticals: foodservice (trade PR, distributor communications, chef engagement), retail and consumer (shopper marketing, consumer PR, brand experience), and ingredients brands operating across both channels. Service modules span creative and design, branding and positioning, PR and social media, video and photography, insight and strategy, content and digital marketing, account-based marketing and brand experiences, media buying and events, and marketing consultancy, organized into foodservice and retail/consumer service lines.

The firm's underlying technology stack is built around two proprietary assets — the SENSE social listening platform, used to power the Reading Chefs' Minds chef research report, and the Jellybrain insights hub, which delivers market intelligence and thought leadership content. These are complemented by third-party data partnerships with Lumina Intelligence, Mintel, and Brandwatch. Jellybean's revenue model combines ongoing retainer-based work (acting as an extension of client marketing teams) with project-based integrated brand campaigns ranging from approximately £5,000 for tactical projects to £300,000+ for major annual programmes. Pricing tiers include foodservice tactical projects (from ~£10,000), integrated foodservice campaigns (£15,000-£50,000), and major brand campaigns for established suppliers (£50,000-£300,000+), typically with an initial 6-12 month commitment.

The agency serves enterprise food and drink brands including Ferrero, Yeo Valley, Mutti, Maldon Salt, McCormick, Unilever Food Solutions, Booker, and Flahavan's, alongside challenger brands, SMBs (e.g., Porky Whites), startups (Actiph Water), and charitable organizations (Hospitality Action). Distribution is direct and senior-team-led in the UK market, supported by industry-event presence (Lumina Intelligence forums, Craft Guild of Chefs Awards, Public Sector Catering Awards, HRC/IFE, Lunch!). In September 2024 the firm transitioned to full employee ownership, and in April 2026 appointed Neil Brenson and Susan Wickes as joint Managing Directors alongside founder/CEO Fiona Rickard.

Name

Jellybean Creative Solutions

Legal name

Jellybean Creative Solution Ltd

Website

https://jellybeancreative.co.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

1987

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Leatherhead

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Marketing Services Retainer: Ongoing retainer-based work where jellybean acts as an extension of client marketing teams, providing integrated marketing services across PR, social, digital, design, branding, strategy, trade marketing and events
2. Campaign Projects: One-off integrated brand campaigns and tactical projects delivered over defined timeframes (from a few weeks to 3 years)

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Jellybean Creative Solutions is a specialist food and drink marketing agency delivering integrated communications, PR, digital, social media, shopper, trade, and creative design services to foodservice and consumer brands. Founded in 1987 and based in Leatherhead, Surrey, the firm operates across two divisions — Foodservice and Retail/Consumer — and pairs campaign execution with proprietary research and insights tools for the food and drink sector.

Product overview

Jellybean Creative Solutions is an integrated marketing agency offering a comprehensive portfolio of marketing services for food and drink brands across foodservice, retail, and consumer channels. The agency operates as a full-service marketing firm organized into two main divisions—Foodservice (covering Integrated Foodservice Marketing, PR & Events, Digital & Social, and Design & Creative) and Retail/Consumer (covering Consumer PR, Digital/Social & Influencer, Retail Trade Marketing, and Shopper Marketing). Supporting these are cross-cutting service modules including Creative & Design, Branding & Positioning, Insight & Strategy, Content & Digital Marketing, Video & Photography, ABM & Brand Experiences, Media Buying & Events, and Marketing Consultancy. The agency also offers proprietary research products including the Jellybrain insights hub and the Reading Chefs' Minds chef insight report. Founded in 1987, the company became employee-owned in September 2024 and employs approximately 25 people.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Integrated Foodservice Marketing End-to-end marketing service combining PR, digital, social, creative and trade activation tailored to foodservice operators, suppliers and brand owners.
• Foodservice PR & Events Trade public relations and live event management service for foodservice brands targeting chefs, operators and the foodservice trade press.
• Foodservice Digital & Social

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 116 pieces of trade and consumer coverage generated in six months for The Cheeky Panda
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers15 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Lumina IntelligencecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLong-term partnership involving attendance at Lumina Intelligence Food Strategy Forums (Q2, Q3). Jellybean staff regularly attend these events and reference Lumina data in client work. Partnership provides access to consumer tracking data, market insights, and industry trend analysis used to inform client campaigns and thought leadership content.
• H2O PublishingcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerStrong relationships with H2O Publishing who have a range of channel-specific trade titles. H2O Publishing is a key publisher in the foodservice media space that jellybean leverages for trade PR and media coverage for clients.
• Hospitality ActioncoreOthersLong-time supporter of Hospitality Action charity which supports those in need in the UK hospitality industry. Susan Wickes serves as a Hospitality Action Ambassador. Jellybean provides PR and marketing support including building bespoke websites for charity programmes like Social Sunday. Team participates in fundraising events including Winter Chefs' Dinners.
• The Staff CanteencoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership for Reading Chefs' Minds research report. Quantitative research powered by 100 chefs from The Staff Canteen platform. Also involved in The Staff Canteen Live at industry events.
• Craft Guild of ChefscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerActive involvement with Craft Guild of Chefs including attendance and sponsorship of annual awards. Jellybean staff attend to network with chefs and build relationships for client campaigns. The Craft Guild of Chefs Awards are described as the UK's most inclusive culinary awards.
• MintelminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerJellybean staff attend Mintel webinars and reference their consumer research in content. Mentions Mintel's consumer predictions and trend analysis for strategic insight.
• Distributor Networks (Bidfood, Brakes, Booker)coreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorDeep understanding of working with major foodservice distributors including Bidfood, Brakes, and Booker. These relationships are critical for client distribution strategies and campaign execution in the foodservice channel.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Cirkle: UK-based independent food and drink marketing communications agency offering PR, digital, social and creative services to food and beverage brands. Closely comparable to Jellybean in vertical specialisation, integrated service model and food-and-drift-only client focus.
• Speed Communications: UK food and lifestyle PR and communications agency with a strong food and drink client base. Comparable in vertical focus, boutique agency scale and emphasis on trade and consumer PR for food and hospitality brands.
• The Food People: UK food and drink marketing and insight agency combining consumer trend tracking with brand strategy and activation. Comparable in foodservice and retail client base, and in combining data-driven insight with creative campaign work for food brands.
• Grifco PR: UK food and drink PR and communications specialist with a longstanding foodservice and retail client roster. Closely comparable in vertical specialisation, agency scale and trade media access for food and hospitality clients.

Broad incumbents

• Edelman: Global communications firm with a substantial food, beverage and nutrition client roster including major CPG brands. Comparable in serving large food and drink clients with integrated PR and brand work, but at much larger scale and across many industries.
• Ketchum: Global communications consultancy with a dedicated food and beverage practice serving major CPG and foodservice clients. Comparable in serving enterprise food and drink clients with integrated PR and digital work, but operating at network scale across many industries and geographies.
• Weber Shandwick: Global PR and integrated communications network with a dedicated food and beverage practice serving major CPG, foodservice and retail clients. Comparable in integrated service offering and food vertical expertise, but with global reach and broad portfolio across many industries.
• FleishmanHillard: Global PR and integrated communications network with significant food, beverage and foodservice client work. Comparable in serving major food brands with PR and brand activation, but operates at network scale and across many verticals.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/jellybeanPR
• Facebookfacebook.com/CapacityMktg
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/jellybean-creative
• Instagraminstagram.com/jellybeancreative

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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

M&A

Investments

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

Frequently asked questions about Jellybean Creative Solutions