The Food Ferry


“I supported the directors of this online retailer with the turnaround and sale of their business.”


The Food Ferry were a niche online retailer, providing customers with grocery and gourmet products.  With a range of online and offline ordering mechanisms and delivery within London through its own fleet of vehicles and outside of London via courier, the operation is supported by a loyal customer base, many who had been shopping with Food Ferry for over 10 years.

I was engaged by The Food Ferry directors during 2004, to assist with the development of a turnaround strategy.  Sales had been in decline and profits squeezed by the entry of the major supermarket groups into the online retail market.

The assignment led to 2 major activities:

  1. A programme of cost-cutting which stemmed the immediate profitability concerns, and
  2. A plan to undertake a corporate transaction – sale of the business, new investment or merger.

I worked with the directors to prepare a proposal document targeted at relevant investors which led to the successful merger with Swaddles Green Farm early in 2005.