Bread & Butter - We Used Our Loaf

Food and drink brands from across the UK have been given all the right ingredients to help their businesses grow, as part of the first ever Bread & Butter. The festival for food and drink founders drew in hundreds of entrepreneurs - and its success now heralds a return in 2017.

Meet the cast

Bread & Butter - a two-day conference and boot camp for emerging food brands - was held at the Institute of Directors in London. It provided a unique opportunity for start-ups and scale-ups to meet like-minded others - and to grill those who have been there and done it.

The inspirational line-up of speakers included Camilla Barnard from Rude Health; Tamara Arbib from Rebel Kitchen; Richard Wilkinson from Doisy & Dam; Craig Sams from Green & Blacks; Patrick Drake from Hello Fresh; Ryan Kohn from Propercorn; Hugh Thomas from Ugly Drinks; Mark Palmer from Pret a Manger; Emma Macdonald from The Bay Tree, and Chris Ormrod from Ministry of Cake.

Tasty feedback

As well as invaluable advice, entrepreneurs were offered the incredible opportunity to pitch their products directly to buyers from Whole Foods Market, Not On The High Street and Fortnum & Mason. There was also a Tasting Panel for brands to receive expert feedback from buyers including Selfridges, Holland & Barrett, Sourced Market, Eat 17 and Planet Organic.

The right ingredients

Food and drink entrepreneurs have hailed Bread & Butter as an incredible opportunity for their businesses:

Zeynep Turudi, founder of Truede Turkish Delights, said: "The event was extremely knowledgeable - and I found myself running from room to room to see all the talks, which were very insightful. I wish that I had had all of this knowledge when I first started out thirteen years ago. What a great event indeed!"

Gilly Pollock, from Green & Jenks Gelato House - producers of handmade ice cream, said: "The speakers and exhibitors at Bread & Butter were some of the best in their specialism. Over the two days I learnt so much, from practical cash flow management, how to pitch to retailers and how to become the next new challenger brand. All the speakers were inspirational and I learnt so much, more than you would expect to gain from just two days."

Dan Pearce, co founder of Jake's Boost, produces all natural nut and seed butters. He scooped a prize worth £2,500 of branding assistance from Paton Tupper, at the festival. Dan said: "Bread & Butter more than lived up to expectation - from the ideally suited, not to mention easily reached venue; almost too many inspirational speakers to fit on one bill; the many networking opportunities, and the all important chance to pitch to buyers from major retailers such as Whole Foods and Fortnum & Mason. There was something for every food business, from bootstrapping start-ups to SMEs and beyond."

Stephanie Peritore, founder and managing director of Mindful Bites snacks, said: "Bread & Butter has succeeded in attracting an outstanding line-up of speakers and buyers, as well as super start-up businesses whom I hope to stay connected with going forward.”

Sarah Durber, from Banana Karma, creators of Vegan flapjacks and cakejacks, said: "Bread & Butter was the perfect event to showcase Banana Karma ahead of our launch in the New Year. It was incredible to get feedback from industry experts, and to connect with fellow entrepreneurs and industry professionals. Not only did I learn so much, I also got the opportunity to pitch my products to retailers - which was the icing on the cake."

Entrepreneurs Jason Gibb and Tara Mei co founded the Pall Mall event, in a bid to give emerging food brands the tools to grow and develop their businesses.

Jason said: "We wanted to create a special place for food founders that gave them the information, and the confidence, to make their brands a success. We also sought to connect these people to like-minded others - and set them on the right path. We have been overwhelmed by the positive feedback that we have had - from delegates, exhibitors and speakers. It just goes to show that the industry was crying out for an event like Bread & Butter."

Chef Wise website .