The Compleat Food Group has expanded its dairy-free portfolio with the purchase of the Julienne Bruno brand after the UK start-up went into administration.
Sam Birchall and Howard Smith from Interpath Advisory were appointed joint administrators to Julienne Bruno on 11 November, the agency said in a statement posted on its website.
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The Compleat Food Group then stepped in to buy “certain assets” of Julienne Bruno, Interpath said, although noting that 14 employees have been made redundant.
Julienne Bruno joins the Palace Culture dairy-free brand acquired in 2023 by The Compleat Food Group, which was formed in 2021 when private-equity owner – Paris-headquartered PAI Partners – merged the UK portfolio companies Winterbotham Darby and Addo Food Group.
Last year, the acquisitive business added Harvey & Brockless to its portfolio, a manufacturer of cheeses, charcuterie, olives and deli products. The Julienne Bruno brand has been bought by the same subsidiary.
A spokesperson for The Compleat Food Group said in a brief statement: “Harvey & Brockless has acquired the assets of Julienne Bruno and is committed to ensuring the continuation of its much-loved plant-based products.
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By GlobalData“We are currently relocating the production assets to our facility in Evesham, Worcestershire, with availability expected to resume in the new year.”
Interpath suggested that Julienne Bruno, set up in 2020, was struggling to turn a profit.
“With additional investment required to reach sufficient scale to enable profitability, the company recently embarked on an exercise to explore the sale and investment options available,” Interpath added.
“Unfortunately, despite a competitive process with a number of parties showing interest in the brand, a solvent outcome could not be found, and as a result, the company was placed into administration.”
Based in Ruislip on the outskirts of London, Julienne Bruno produced dairy-free spreads and cottage cheese. It was registered in 2020 under company director Axel Katalan Nasi, according to a filing with Companies House.
Stockists included Tesco stores in Ireland, Ocado, Whole Foods Market, The Co-op, Planet Organic and Harrods, according to the company’s website. It also supplied select foodservice outlets, mainly in London.
Tom Swiers, head of food and drink for Interpath, said: “Since its launch, Julienne Bruno had developed a great reputation for its innovative and high-quality plant-based products. We’re pleased to have achieved this sale which will enable the brand to continue under new ownership and deliver to its customers.”
Meanwhile, since the acquisitions of Harvey & Brockless and Palace Culture, The Compleat Food Group has bought other assets. During the summer, private label food-to-go supplier Freshpak was added to the portfolio. And earlier in the year, it snapped up The Real Yorkshire Pudding Co.
Before embarking on M&A, the line up under Addo Food included the Pork Farms, Wall’s and Bowyer’s pies and pork pie brands. And olives and antipasti with Winterbotham Darby, including the Squeaky Bean vegan line of meat-free products.
