Elaine Watson
Frozen food specialist Eismann will target the Midlands and northern England with its direct sales operation as its new parent Nestlé °umps cash into the business.
UK md Charles Schneider said heamed to double the company's 100-strong fleet of home delivery trucks within three years. Eismann was bought by Nestl頩n February as part of the deal to buy German ice cream giant Schoeller ­ Eismann's former owner.
The £12.5m UK business operates from a Luton warehouse, selling frozen foods under the Eismann brand direct to consumers via a fleet of vans.These operate on a franchise basis, collecting stock from a series of satellite depots across the Midlands and the south-east. Each sells a range of 300 premium quality products direct to consumers in a given area every fortnight.
Schneider said Nestlé ·as committed to developing the business, which has suffered from a lack of investment in the last year or so. However, there were no plans to bypass retailers and wholesalers by introducing Nestlé ¢randed products onto the trucks, he stressed.
Nevertheless, the Nestlé ®ame on Eismann catalogues and possibly on the vans would give the business a boost as the brand is so well known.
Although the multiples had encroached on Eismann's territory with moves into the online shopping arena, the business had not suffered, insisted Schneider. "We are in a different market. We're not just delivering an order. We are a sales organisation. Our drivers are selling you products from a shop on your doorstep."

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