EP Business in Hospitality Issue 49 - April 2014

Take a walk
on the
ENTREPRENEUR
Wild Trail
good for us, the bar quickly became
a ‘healthy indulgence’. Gordon’s first
snack bar was awarded the Great Taste
Gold award in 2010 by the Guild of Fine
Food – the only cereal bar to have won
this award. There were three varieties
produced so as to indulge as many
tastes as possible: apple and raspberry,
double chopped cranberry, and fruit
with double nut.
Following the success of his popcorn
bars, Gordon decided to set up a
company that produced healthy snack
bars, with British products being used
to create and produce the bars here.
His mission statement is simply “easier
to eat healthier, nutritionally better
snacks which taste
great and make
you feel fabulous”.
The new healthy
snack bars, which
Gordon will refer to
as a way to “happy
and healthy snacking”,
are wheat and dairy
free so can be enjoyed
by vegetarians and
vegans alike. They
have the Vegetarian
Society stamp of approval.
Despite a good uptake with
distributors and outlets, the original
bars that hit the shelves had slow sales
and feedback was that the bars were
“too healthy”! This was put down to
the fact that the bars were quite crisp
and crunchy and although healthy did
not give the ‘satisfaction’ feel. They
were low in fats and sugars – in fact,
up to 36% less fats and sugars than
other healthy bars on the market.
“Back to the drawing board,” Gordon
thought, and after hours burning the
midnight light he came upon virgin
coconut oil as the potential missing
ingredient. It contained all the natural
properties that were needed for his bars
and so coconut oil became the perfect
answer and his ‘perfect partner’. Added
to the bars, the coconut oil allowed the
snacks to be produced in a softer and
much moister format – this meant that
when they were eaten they felt more
indulgent to the consumer.
Sales took off and enquiries increased
rapidly. There are three varieties of the
newest bars currently: Cherry Crumble,
Berry Granola, and Orange Oatie.
Further flavours are in the pipeline
and Gordon will tell you that “you
will not find a better bar per bite”.
So where does Gordon see his
journey taking him? The answer is
a larger focus on expanding in the UK.
Production is settled
“
snack bar was
”
in a new facility, the
new packaging is
looking good and the
new moist bars have
been well received.
His attention is on
independent chains,
wholesalers and
distributors. The
Wild Trail bars can
be found on sale at
Pod, Tossed and Chopp’d, along with a
string of other cafés and bars. Despite
the concentration on the UK market,
the interest from international buyers
has also increased with strong sales in
Switzerland, Iceland, Denmark
and Norway and even as far afield
as Thailand.
Gordon is a quietly spoken man,
who has experienced the horrors
of war and the banking world
(no shortage of horrors there) and
has vowed never to go back. After
discovering how unhealthy ‘healthy’
can be in the world of snack bars
he has developed a truly healthy
alternative snacking sensation
called Wild Trail. Why not take
a ‘trek’ and try one for yourself?
EP | April 14 | 49