A new management team has taken over at frozen food specialist Findus, promising an aggressive and entrepreneurial spirit that "will show our competitors we are back in business". The two new appointments, are both from Nestlé, which sold Findus late last year to Swedish investment bank EQT. The deal was finally confirmed this week. John Brittain, until recently general manager of Nestlé's chilled food division, will become general manager, replacing David Barlow. Suzanne Nagle set up and was general manager of Nestlé's nutritional division. Her new role as sales and marketing director sees her replace Philip Earl. Both Barlow and Earl will remain at Nestlé. Speaking exclusively to The Grocer, Nagle said: "Nestlé has a huge portfolio of products and could not give the time or investment to the frozen foods business. "We now have the opportunity to focus on the core brands and give Findus the necessary investment to focus on European markets." They have the backing of EQT, an investment bank specialising in capital venture funding and takeovers, generally targeting underperforming companies. Nagle said: "EQT is always interested in business opportunities and better returns." The fine detail of the sale was not confirmed, but Nagle said Findus was valued in Europe at 600 million ecus. Findus has been producing frozen food since 1945 and its current factory in Longbenton on Tyneside employs 600 people. It owns several brands including Lean Cuisine and New York Take Out. UK sales hit £80m last year with products such as lasagne, French bread pizza and crispy pancakes. Nagle said it was early days to be spelling out specifics but said: "We aim to make the frozen food cabinet work a lot harder for retailers. It is really exciting to be able to focus 100% on Findus." {{NEWS }}

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