Name: Brandon Bailey
Age: 25
Job title: Packaging line leader
Company & location: The Bury Black Pudding Company in Bury, Lancashire
Education: PE, Geography and History A-levels
As a child, what did you want to be when you grew up? I always wanted to do something related to football, either as a player or a coach. I also have a strong passion for boxing, particularly cage fighting.
Why did you decide to pursue a career in food & drink? While completing my coaching badges at Manchester City, I needed additional finances to fund the course. I knew that The Bury Black Pudding Company was a well-known and busy business in the area, so I took on a role as an operative back in 2019.
“People don’t realise how fast-paced it is, especially during peak seasons like Christmas”
Explain your job to us in a sentence (or two): As a line leader I oversee the products coming through my area, ensuring the quality, packaging and date codes are correct, maintaining efficiency on the line, training staff and handling all necessary paperwork.
What does a typical day look like for you? The business has grown significantly in recent years – ensuring that all labels, dates and paperwork are accurate is crucial before any product leaves the factory. The number of staff members is also increasing, so a large part of my role involves training new team members. In addition, I am a health & safety representative for my area, which requires ongoing support and monitoring.
Tell us how you went about applying for your job: My mum started working at the company as a cleaner and when I needed extra income to support my coaching badges, she mentioned there were job opportunities available. I came in for an interview, and on the same day I was offered a role. My strong work ethic and willingness to learn shone through during the interview, and before I even got home, I received a call offering me the job. I started the very next day – it all happened so quickly, but I’ve never looked back and now I’m a line leader.
What’s the best part about working for a food & drink company? It’s funny – before working in the industry, you don’t think how food is produced and the process it takes before getting on the supermarket shelf. But once you do, you become completely invested. Walking down supermarket aisles, I always check our products to ensure they look good on the shelves and that there’s plenty of stock available.
The proudest moment was being on holiday in Lanzarote and spotting Bury Black Pudding on a restaurant menu – it made me feel incredibly proud of the brand and my hometown.
And what’s the biggest misconception people have about working in food & drink? People don’t realise how fast-paced it is, especially during peak seasons like Christmas. However, if you have a strong team around you – like we do here – everything runs like clockwork. The industry is also evolving with new technology, and it’s fascinating to be part of that progression.
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What advice would you give to other young people looking to get into the food & drink industry? There are plenty of opportunities to build a long-term career due to the number of different departments and roles involved in a food and drink business. People will always need food and drink, so if you are willing to give 100% there will always be a role to interest you.
What’s your ultimate career dream? I think it’s a bit too late to become a football player now! But I love this company and my role here. I know there are further opportunities and I’m excited to see where my career takes me next.
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