Party on! Swedish frozen baked goods specialist Almondy AB is celebrating a decade of serving gluten-free cakes to customers in the United Kingdom. Since entering the British foodservice sector in earnest after setting up a London office in 2005, sales have grown to 1.6 million portions per year.
The company, originally known as Mandelbageriet, was founded by Lennart Dahlbom and Kent Ahlqvist in Gothenberg, Sweden, more than 30 years ago when they discovered a “secret recipe” for almond cake dating back to the 1890s. The venture started out quite humbly, as their first capital equipment was a used pizza oven used to bake tarts. Since then the business has grown to the point where more than 70,000 cakes are produced daily at Almondy’s our state of the art bakery in Torslanda. Approximately 46 million gluten-free cakes are produced per annum and exported to 46 countries.
“Ten years is a huge milestone for us, and in that time we have grown beyond our expectations,” said Andrew Ely, managing director of the United Kingdom operation. “We secured our first listing with Bidvest Foodservice in 2007, and from there it has really taken off with Almondy stocked by Brakes as well as many other wholesalers. Our reach extends from restaurants and cafes to bakeries and pubs across the UK.”
The current offering features 15 cakes ranging from the original Authentic Swedish Almond Tarta and best-selling Almond Cake with Daim, to Cadbury Chocolate and Almond Cake and Philadelphia Cheesecake covered with lemon frosting. Smaller-size, 400-gram cakes are available in supermarkets, while the larger ones are typically served up by the slice at restaurants and other foodservice outlets and during catered events.
“The secret to Almondy’s success is not just its unique flavors and innovative toppings, but also the fact that it has come to signify quality and become a brand that caterers and consumers trust,” said Ely. “Couple this with the fact that Almondy’s desserts are made without using flour, which means they are gluten-free, is a huge selling point too. Kent and Lennart were clearly ahead of their time when de eloping these cakes, as today we all know gluten-free has become an important and lucrative market.”
