Northern Irish bakery secures new deal with Lidl
Gillian Castles, Holmes Bakery account manager
A bakery in Co Armagh has won a £200,000 deal to supply sweet treats to Lidl Northern Ireland stores.
Holmes Bakery has been in business since 1937 will add three new team members to it’s 20 person strong workforce as a result of the deal. It will supply fifteens, caramel fingers and sweet mince slices to more than 40 Lidl stores across the region.
Family-run Holmes Bakery, which was acquired by Woodwin Catering in 2009, won an initial supplier contract last year after taking part in the retailer’s Kickstart Supplier Development Programme in 2021.
And the partnership with Lidl Northern Ireland has been described as a “a significant milestone” for the brand, which has won several awards.
Lidl Northern Ireland said the deal was part of its commitment to support innovative suppliers in Northern Ireland. Last year, it sourced nearly £350m of goods from suppliers in Northern Ireland.
Zoe Russell, Lidl Northern Ireland buyer, said: “Local suppliers are the bedrock of our success and we’re excited to be further investing in and championing another home-grown company which continues to prove itself as one of the region’s most ambitious and innovative companies.
Our new supply contract with Holmes Bakery underlines the growing popularity of its products with our customers and expands the range available to shoppers while also helping to create new local jobs, it’s a sweet treat for everyone.”
According to grocery information company Kantar, Lidl is the province’s fastest-growing supermarket retailer. It now has a 9.2% share of the market after reporting the strongest growth among all retailers – up 27% year-on-year.
Gillian Castles, Holmes Bakery account manager, said: “Our newest supply deal represents a significant milestone for our team and is a testament to our own focus on providing quality products and ingredients that consumers want to buy.
We are delighted that Lidl Northern Ireland is continuing to invest in Holmes Bakery as it enables us to invest further in building our team and in growing our award-wining range of products.”
In the 12 months to February 2022, Lidl Northern Ireland poured £347m into the agri-food industry here, supporting 60 producers.
The company said that almost £300m worth of goods procured locally were exported through Lidl’s expansive store network, reaching new customers across Europe from Britain and Ireland as far as Romania, Greece, Cyprus and even to the USA.
Lidl Northern Ireland employs more than 1,200 people across its 41-strong store network and regional distribution centre in Nutts Corner.
Other Northern Ireland companies supported by Lidl Northern Ireland include Enniskillen-based artisan condiment supplier Erne Larder and apple producers Natural Umber, based in Dungannon.
