Just a few months on from appearing on BBC 1’s top business programme Dragon’s Den, 24 year old single mum Kirsty Henshaw will see her additive-free, nutritious desserts launch in 400 Sainsbury’s stores nationwide. Kirsty was inspired to create the dessert by her four-year-old son, Jake who suffers from serious food allergies and intolerances.
Kirsty tamed Peter Jones and Duncan Bannatyne to secure £60,000 funding from the Dragons. Shortly after she obtained a license agreement with R&R Ice Cream to commercially develop her frozen dessert and to launch it as ‘Worthenshaw’s Freedom’.
Kirsty researched the market and found that an incredible 38% people have some sort of food allergy or intolerance. Her rebranded iced dessert, which is a natural recipe, is free from dairy, gluten, soya, eggs, nuts and artificial colours and flavours.
Sainsbury’s accounts for 52% of the total frozen freefrom market and is therefore the ideal retailer to launch Kirtsy’s Worthenshaw’s Freedom dessert.
The supermarket will offer an introductory Buy One Get One Free offer for customers to tempt them to try different flavours of the delicious and healthy treat.
£3.99 for a 480ml tub.
R&R Ice Cream has also gained listings in all other major multiples for the full range of iced desserts which will retail at £3.99 for a 480ml tub.
Commenting on the license deal, Mike Fraine, Sales Director at R&R, said: “UK consumers love their ice cream. The market is worth £709.2M, up 7% year-on-year.
“We’re delighted to have been able to transfer this recipe to a factory setting and get the product on shelf so quickly. While the market for free-from is still relatively small, there is a growing demand and we estimate Kirsty’s unique product will generate first year retail sales in the region of £6m. From the outset, we understood that this product was a great concept and the brainchild of a very passionate and inspiring young woman, and along with our expertise in this sector, we’re confident it will be a great success.”
Kirsty added: “I’m thrilled to see the products that I invented at home in my own kitchen, now on the shelf in so many stores. I’m happy it has gone down so well with the retailers and they love Worthenshaw’s Freedom as much as my son and I do!”
Andy Phelps, Sainsbury’s category manager for frozen food said: “Kirsty’s product is unique and offers people who suffer from a number of food allergies the opportunity to enjoy a delicious dessert that is safe for them to eat. And I’m sure it will be popular with other customers too, as it’s a healthy dessert option which is low in calories and fat. I’m delighted that we’ve been able to get in into our stores so quickly so that our customers can enjoy it as much as the Dragons did on the show!”
The product is available in three flavours - chocolate, vanilla and strawberry - and caters for the healthy market, as well as consumers with allergies, with a single serving of the product containing approximately 80 calories.
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