The founder of a snacking startup has started dressing as a robber to give out samples of his products outside Holland & Barrett stores, having accused the retailer of copying them.
Giuseppe Baidoo, the founder and CEO of dried apple crisp brand Gusto, has claimed Holland & Barrett’s own label Apple Chips 20g (£1.29) are a “copy version of our snacks”.
Baidoo said his team met a product developer from Holland & Barrett at Bread & Jam festival in the summer of 2022. They requested a box of samples, assuring the Gusto team they would pass them on to the relevant buyer, Baidoo claimed.
After the buyer in question confirmed they had never received the samples, Gusto hand-delivered a second batch to Holland & Barrett’s headquarters in Nuneaton.
This was followed by a meeting with Holland & Barrett, in which plans for a potential launch were discussed, according to Baidoo.
Having not heard back from Holland & Barrett by early 2023, however, Baidoo claimed he chased up the opportunity. He received an email from another buyer, who told him: “we are launching something similar in our private label and therefore we are not looking for any branded alternatives”.
Holland & Barrett then debuted its own Apple Chips 20g (£1.29) in September 2023, which was “very disappointing”, Baidoo told The Grocer.
Dried not fried claim
While the packaging is visually different, Baidoo pointed to similarities in the on-pack messaging, with Holland & Barrett also using wonky fruit and preparing the chips with the same “dried not fried method”.
“It’s annoying, but I just decided to use it as a marketing campaign,” said Baidoo.
Earlier this month, Baidoo dressed like a robber and set up camp outside a Holland & Barrett store in a bid to convince shoppers to buy his products instead of theirs.
“I wrote a sign saying, ‘Snacks so yummy, they copied it in a hurry’; I bought their copy version of our snacks and brought my own snacks, and I offered samples to their customers.
“I was asking their customers to decide which one was the best… and so far, they have said ours are the best,” he claimed.
‘Transparency and fairness’
When approached by The Grocer, a spokesman for Holland & Barrett said the retailer took “all allegations seriously” and was “committed to transparency and fairness”.
“Our relationships with our suppliers are very important to us, and we are always committed to learning how can improve,” he said.
“The development of our own brand Apple Crisps began in Autumn 2022, well before discussions with Gusto [Baidoo] began in January 2023.
“Our product, made with 100% apple, is one of many types of apple crisps available in the market, and was developed independently as part of a broader food range we launched in September 2023.
“We sincerely regret that Gusto felt that they did not have a positive experience and the frustration this may have caused.”
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