Blog

  1. Christmas 2022 Launch Shows

    Join us at one of our Christmas 2022 Launch Shows

     

    Discover our festive range, meet our suppliers and taste fantastic products!

     

    Wednesday 4th May - Solihull Cranmore Park, B90 4LF

    Thursday 5th May - Bracknell The Coppid Beech Hotel, RG12 8TF

     

    Come prepared to order on the day and receive exclusive show discounts.

     

    To register your interested or for more information, please speak to your Account Manager.

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  2. Fairtrade Fortnight

    21st February - 6th March

    With the mass of certifications, labels and logos on our food packaging, the Fairtrade mark is still just as important.

    Instantly recognisable as a mark of standard enabling customers to know the farmers and workers have been paid a fair price, have safer working environments, support local sustainability and have fair terms of trade. Choosing Fairtrade is an easy switch for customers, and they instantly know they have made a better choice.

    The number of products that holds the Fairtrade mark is over 6000, and as a retailer you may already stock fresh produce such as bananas that hold the mark. Some of the other main categories include Chocolate, Tea and Coffee and we are proud to stock products across these categories, as well as others, so you can help your customers make the switch.

    Fairtrade brands to offer to your customers:

    Cocoa Loco

    Divine

    Proper

    Tony’s Chocolonely

    Charitea

    Read more »
  3. Spring clean!

    February is finally here after a long, dark January. The days are getting longer and the urge to throw open the windows and let the fresh air in is growing stronger.

    February is great time to encourage your customers in to starting their spring cleans. After nearly two years of lockdowns, restrictions and uncertainty, we can now have guests round, entertain and finally have that dinner party. And, with the guests comes the need for a tidy house, a chance to rid the dust and dirt and spritz every surface with an eco-friendly sanitiser.

    When we launched our non-food and cleaning product category in 2020, we were determined to promote eco-friendly solutions, whether that be better packaging, cleaner ingredients or plastic-free alternatives for kitchen products, and we have continued this by adding some great innovative products and increasing the range to include tissue products and toiletries.

    The latest addition to the range is Neat, a single-use plastic-free refillable system that also cuts the need to transport unnecessary water. We have the starter kits available as well as the refills for antibacterial all-purpose cleaner and bathroom cleaner.

    If you’re looking to stock a full range as a one-stop-shop for all your customers cleaning product needs, then we have the option of Bio D, made using ethically sources ingredients in fully recyclable packaging, or Ecozone who make a full range of environmentally sustainable products. There is also

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  4. Cotswold Fayre Summer Ball 2022

    We're bringing back our Summer Ball to help raise funds for chosen charities, Bala Children's Centre and The Cowshed.

    We’re passionate about what can be achieved when we get our heads (and hearts) together.

    Eat Well. Do Good. Feel Great.

    Join us for pre-dinner drinks, 3 course dinner & wine, charity auction, raffle and dancing until late. A great opportunity to network with the industry and support good causes.

    As relatively small businesses within the food sector, our individual impact on the world stage is tiny, but with all of us doing whatever we can to be better for the planet, and for each other, the combined effect will make a huge difference.  

     

    CLICK HERE for more information and gallery of previous events.

     

    To reserve tickets, speak to a member of the Cotswold Fayre team. Once confirmed, you will be invoiced and contacted separately for attendee names and dietary information.

    If you're interested in purchasing more than 10 tickets or would like to know more about our Sponsorship Packages please contact ashton@cotswold-fayre.co.uk

     

    Details

    Date: Friday 8th July 2022

    Time: 19.00 till late

    Location: De Vere Wokefield Estate Golf Club - Mansion House, Goodboy's Lane, Reading R

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  5. Fresh new chilled catalogue now avilable

    Our new Chilled catalogue is here and it’s filled with lines to freshen up your chillers for the New Year. Whether you’re looking to expand your vegan and plant-based lines, offer your customers more convenience, diversify your dairy options or add more cured meats to your range, our new launches have got you covered.

    We’ve been gradually expanding our vegan range over the last couple of years, and we have now added a new category for plant-based butter and cheese products alongside our meat and yoghurt alternatives. Kinda Co make cheese products from nuts, they come in block or jar form and can be used in place of regular cheese to top pizza, make cheese toasties or to add to sauces for a cheesy twist. There’s also cashew-based butter from Mergulo, designed to be the ultimate staple ingredient for home cooks looking to pursue a vegan lifestyle. We have also expanded our ranges from existing suppliers, adding The Collective's vegan yogurts, even more products from The Coconut Collaborative and chicken style pieces from Squeaky Bean.

    Now that life is slowly returning to normal after an unprecedented couple of years, convenient lines will be back in demand. Potato products from Worth Family Farm take the stress out of the kitchen while

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  6. New Year, New Products

    Our new catalogue is finally here and with it is a great range of exciting new products, old favourites and this year we have put a real focus on making a difference with more sustainable brands, plastic free products, and even more B Corps! We have new suppliers across every category, so all our retailers have the chance to liven up their shelves for 2022.

     

    Plastic-free products

    As of April 2021, we because a plastic neutral company meaning we offset all the plastic from every delivery (find out more here), but we want to do even more by reducing the amount of plastic in our supply chain as much as possible. This was a big consideration when selecting our new brands and it’s so great to have Two Farmers crisps and Freddie’s Farm children’s snacks on board as challenger brands. Also available is Nuud, 100% plastic-free chewing gum that is also biodegradable and plastic free. We have expanded our non-food range by introducing neat., a range of cleaning products with no single-use plastic thanks to its refillable bottle and plastic-free refills, it also saves on transporting water unnecessarily (the main ingredient in many cleaning products).  

     

    Food

    One of our company goals is to help fight food waste. Whilst we already have some great brands who do their bit to use surplus fruit and vegetables, we have now added Flawsome! who make juices and drinks

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  7. CF Blog: Dry January 2022

    Dry January can be a tricky time to plan for many retailers, but there is now more choice than ever for those looking to steer clear of alcohol.

    The pandemic shone a light on people’s relationship with alcohol and this has seen a huge shift in consumer trends towards more mindful drinking. In the first lockdown last year when we were also experiencing a lovely mini heatwave, cracking a beverage after a long day working from home or spent on furlough turned in to a habit for many, and since then there has been a boom in people cutting down on their alcohol consumption, choosing a soft drink instead, or switching their usual drink for an alcohol-free version.

    We added our first alcohol free option to our range back in January 2020, and now have 13 permanent SKUS in the range (with more to come in the new year!). From alcohol-free lager from Freestar and Lucky Saint, to guilt (and hangover free) cocktails from Savyll and botanical spirit alternatives from Sprigster and Warners Gin, there is something for everyone.

    As well as like for like replacements, we also offer other options to quench the thirst of your customers. TRIP have a range of soft drinks containing 15mg of CBD which offer a great point of difference for customers looking for something a little bit different.

    Read more »
  8. CF Blog: Veganuary again

    As consumers become more and more aware of the impact of the items filling their shopping baskets each week, the rise of vegetarianism and veganism isn’t likely to slow down. Searches for “vegan” on our website are up 35% on last year with retailers reacting to the consumer demand.

    Veganuary is looming again, and every year more people sign up to cut their meat and dairy consumption and eat only plant-based food for a month. While many just want to challenge themselves for a few short weeks in an attempt to combat the over consumption from the festive period, there are those that use it as a habit changer, proving they don’t have to rely on the traditional “meat and two veg” of days gone by. As a retailer, this means as well as the boost you get to your vegan lines in the first month of the year, don’t be surprised is sales continue to fly!  

    While Veganism is becoming more widespread, it might not create as much demand in all areas. Cities and urban areas, particularly those with a high student population may see these lines sell better, but that doesn’t mean farmshops, foodhalls and delis can’t cash in on the trend.

    Flexitarianism is also still on the up, with people going meat-free a couple of days a week, or only allowing themselves meat as a treat. Whether it’s because of animal welfare reasons, wanting to shop more sustainably or even trying to keep an eye on the bank balance, these days it’s not just about a plate of soggy vegetables, there are endless choices to tempt everyone in.

    We’ve seen a 43% rise in Chilled Vegan sales this year, and this follows our massive expansion to the range over the last couple of years.

    There are meat alternatives from Meatless Farm, This, Vivera,

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  9. CF Blog: Are your customers ready for the return of Bake Off?

    This week sees the return of an annual holiday. The new series of The Great British Bake Off starts this week and the nation is ready. The last 2 years have given birth to a whole new hoard of bakers thanks to lockdown, furlough, and a long damp spring means many of us had nothing better to do than bake away the days, and these new bakers join the ones who were brought up by the stoves, living in aprons, baking Mary Berry recipes from an early age, meaning the captive audience is bigger than ever.

    For those starting out, we have some great Baking Kits including Brownie Mix from Creative Nature, Carrot Cake from Free & Easy and many more. We also added some great options to our Seasonal range for Christmas, The Bottled Baking Co look great on any shelf, BakedIn have some great seasonal options and of course The Treat Kitchen have their best-selling gingerbread kits. Watch this space for some great additions to the seasonal range for Spring too…!

    For ready-made options, we’ve added fresh cakes from Buxton Pudding Company to our Chilled & Fresh range. These come with a minimum of 16 days shelf life and taste good enough to fool anyone they’re homemade.

    For something a little more crunchy and crumbly (and perhaps dunkable), you can never have too many biscuits. Some of our more recent additions include Cuoco and new tins of biscuits from Island Bakery, which would also make great gifts. We’ve also got new gluten free options in the shape of Sweet FA for tho

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  10. Paul Hargreaves: Becoming a B Corp

     

     

    With an ever-increasing interest in becoming a B Corp from the food and drink sector, here are some tips if you want to join the growing community of 80+ food and drink companies out of 650 in the UK.

     

    Before the most recent millennia, human beings generally lived in communities where they saw the direct results of how their actions and work impacted others within their communities and on nature itself. However now, life has changed.

     

    Western business needs to carry much of the responsibility – it’s business that has often reinforced the role of the individual over communities. This mindset has been exported all over the world to encourage people to think of themselves as independent, rather than part of the community. And as we have moved towards a global society, the damage our companies do to our planet is out of sight and out of mind – our waste is often someone else’s problem. We have stopped viewing the people within our businesses as people but human resources, commodities to help us with our single aim of advancing profit at all other costs.

     

    B Corps meet the highest standards of overall social and environmental performance and aim to change the world for the better – and here are some of the key things you need to keep in mind as you try to create a business that is not just better for the planet, but people too.

    1. Create a clear purpose

    In a successful B-Corp, C-Suite execs are ensuring that people come to work with a clear purpose. This is not only better for productivity but also workplace happiness. It’s increasingly important for Gen Z and Gen Y, and as more of them come into the workforce (already more than 50% of the whole) the best talent will increasingly want to work for companies that are helping to bring social justice to the world and positively impacting the climate emergency. They will increasingly prefer not to work for companies who still hold the financial bottom line as paramount. 

    2. Personal purpose

    It’s all very well being part of a company with a strong purpose but encouraging all our people to have a fulfilled life is equally important. We can learn from the Japanese here – a philosophy from the island of Okinawa where more live to 100 years old than anywhere else in the world – not a coincidence! They would say that fulfilment, or Ikigai, comes from being balanced in four areas. Loving what you are doing, being good at what you do, being paid for it and doing something the world needs. It is this last one that many of us miss out to our own and the world’s detriment.

    3. Getting your priorities right

    Every company needs financial sustainability, but in a B Corp, people and planet are put first, and then the profits will fo

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