Scaling an FMCG brand is no easy feat—it takes more than just demand; it requires strategy, flexibility, and strong operational foundations. In our latest roundtable, experts from Borough Broth, Scale 3PL, and Young Foodies shared real-world lessons on growing sustainably, choosing the right channels, impressing buyers, and preparing supply chains for scale. From tech stacks to packaging tweaks, their insights offer a grounded look at what it really takes to grow fast-moving brands without losing control—or sight of your values. 

Meet the experts: 

• Phil Peters - Director of Supply Chain Services at ⁠YF⁠ 

• Ros Heathcote - Founder and Managing Director of ⁠Borough Broth Ltd⁠ 

• Udhi Silva - Co-Founder and CEO of ⁠Scale 3PL⁠ 

Topics covered:

• Is There a Good Time to Scale?

• The Risks of Scaling Too Quickly

• How Do You Choose the Right Channels?

• How Do You Set Your Supply Chain to Scale?

• How Do You Convince a Buyer You're a Safe Bet?

• What Does a Scale Tech-Stack Look Like?

• Can Niche Ingredients Block Things Up?

• Going Global & Staying Green: Key Lessons for Growing Brands

• Scaling Sustainably: Smart Logistics Over Silver Bullets

Today’s product businesses are fighting a battle on many fronts, with the lingering effects of high inflation, high raw materials costs, supply chain uncertainty and an expensive labour market. But with smart customer retention and sales tactics, combined with ruthless optimisation across the three biggest lines of spend – labour, inventory and production – small-to-medium firms can outperform both their peers and the larger players that dominate the market. 

As ever we chat to four SME experts to unearth their methodologies to scale in these challenging times. 

Darren Glanville – Country Manager for UK and EMEA with Fathom 

Dr Neil Keegan – Manufacturing and Operations Specialist 

Phil Oakley - Managing Director of Outserve  

Thomas Laird – MD of Salt of the Earth Deodorants 

What's discussed?

Join the following experts as we share the latest fulfilment thinking and practice:

Growing online retail sales puts increased pressure on the supply chain and fulfilment industry, forcing the entire supply chain to look for ways to optimise processes. Retailers, fulfilment partners, and suppliers alike must enhance operations to meet demand. 

What's discussed when?

00:00 Introduction

07:57 KPIs

20:47 Monitoring Supplier Performance

33:53 UK Carrier Costs

42:58 Fulfillment Automation

49:52 Personalisation

54:27 Last-mile Innovations and Sustainability

1:02:30 Picking Accuracy

1:05:34 Returns and Exchanges

1:11:02 Equality, Diversity and Inclusion

1:16:38 Advice for Supply Chain Professionals

Our deep dive sessions grant you exclusive access to a unique conversation with an admired brand or lesser-known trailblazer. A chance to go into detail with a customer. So indulge yourself; shut out the noise and focus in on one voice, one brand, one story.   

In this episode: Josh has been at Good and Proper for over 7 years and not only heads up operations but also their sales arm. No mean feat. Time to sit up and pay attention.  You’ve probably had a cup of Good and Proper tea if you’ve been to your local swanky cafe lately. 80% of their business is on-trade or foodservice. Of course, they have aspirations to get into retail, but right now that’s their focus.  

Good & Proper are premium tea specialists, loved & served by the UK’s finest cafes, hotels, restaurants and workspaces, as well as a loyal and fast-growing community of tea drinkers at home. From their careful approach to sourcing to their commitment to sustainability, and of course the quality and flavour in every cup, this female-led team is on a mission to show the world how good tea can be, when it's done right. 

What’s discussed? 

Join the following experts as we share the latest sustainable thinking and practice:

Environmental and social sustainability have become staples of a successful modern firm in today’s business landscape. Investors and customers alike are demanding more transparency around how a company operates – making a sustainable supply chain essential to SMEs going forward.

What's discussed when:

2 mins - Brands we admire

6 mins - SME Challenges and opportunities

10 mins - What is ESG? - Richard

13 mins - Are you leveraging your business for good? - Emma

16 mins - TrueStart applying for B Corp status - Jess

19 mins - Where to start and Help staying abreast - Richard

28 mins - Does ESG box ticking go far enough? Emma

32 mins - How green is green energy? - Magnus

34 mins - Carbon Mapping and acting on it  - Jess

37 mins - Growth and sustainability - Jess and Emma

41 mins - Measuring your carbon emissions - Scope 4! - Richard

45 mins - We need to be more ambitious - Emma and Richard

52 mins - Carbon Boarder Adjustments - The Emissions game

54 mins - The economic system - a mind shift is needed - Emma

57 mins - Greenshoring to crush your competition - Magnus

101 mins - How ‘local’ and ‘longevity’ is the answer  - Emma

109 mins - Reverse logistics and waste innovation - Magnus

116 mins - Scope 3 – Help your suppliers help you  - All

121 mins - Where to start? All

- Find your Inefficiencies - Jess and Magnus

- Focus on a root cause - Tony Chocoloney - Emma

Our episode on net zero

Talk to one of our supply chain consultants – ⁠book a 20 min chat⁠  

Our deep dive sessions grant you exclusive access to a unique conversation with an admired brand or lesser-known trailblazer. A chance to go into detail with a customer. So indulge yourself; shut out the noise and focus in on one voice, one brand, one story.  

In this episode Unleashed's UK content lead Bryony Hampton is lucky enough to sit down with co-founder of Candy Kittens, Ed Williams. You may know CK via Jaimie Lang from Made in Chelsea fame. Ed is the yin to Jamie's yang. Hope you enjoy the chat. 

What's discussed?

And what the poster says behind Ed? WALES IS ALWAYS A GOOD IDEA

Optimising your supply chain is a surefire way to create competitive advantage. But it's a broad, fast-moving topic, so we've recruited customers and partners to share best practice and help find ways to refine operations, inventory, purchasing, and distribution.

The bottom line is, if you're delivering products at lower costs with higher profit levels, you're succeeding. Easy peasy yeah?  

The Experts:

Neil Keegan – Head of Manufacturing at Automata, robotic lab solutions in London 

Sam Walker – Systems Architect at Flowstore Systems, Lean manufacturing, engineering, production line and warehouse bespoke solutions in Uxbridge 

Alex Townson – Head of Outsourced Supply Chain at FY formally known as young foodies, an incubator and community for ambitious FMCG brands - in London 

Hugh Robinson - Transition and Transformation Senior Manager at flinder (a technology and data-led finance partner) 

What's discussed when:

6 mins - Demand planning best practice

19 mins - Bottlenecks in robotics , OTIFs, Hidden Factory

34 mins - bottlenecks in FMCG, managing lead times, mitigating risk, 'walking the line'

40 mins - Automata's pivot and nearshoring

47 mins - 3PM benefits

52 mins - Inventory placement and warehouse efficiencies

58 mins - Meeting customer expectations in the NHS and multichannel best practice

105 mins - Reducing cost, capturing cost, BOMs, COGS

108 mins - Performance, supplier analysis, component consolidation, pareto charts cut through,

119 mins - Contribution margin and unit economics

Watch or skim the highlights here

⁠

How do you quickly optimise min & max stock levels in Unleashed? And other videos

Inventory formulas & live inventory calculators

Talk to one of our supply chain consultants – book a 20 min chat  

While technology has been a focus in supply chain management for many years, in the end successful supply chains depended on people. In this eighth Unleashed Supply Chain Management Roundtable we speak to a collection of experts and industry professionals on their approach to the challenges of staffing and skills management. 

The Experts: 

Sergio Da Silva, Supply Chain Analyst, Flava Dot Global 

Phil Peters, Head of Supply Chain Services at YF 

Ned Neville-Rolfe, Head of Operations, Sapling Spirits 

Chris Willcock, Head of Brewing and Supply Chain Operations, 4 Pines Brewing Co. 

In this episode out panel discuss: 

5 mins - What appeals about working in the manufacturing supply chain?  

8 mins – State of the nation. What are your staffing challenges? South Africa, Australia and the UK 

20 mins - Attracting the right talent and how being a B Corp helps. 

27 mins – Is training a ‘magnanimous gesture’? 

31 mins - What’s the right personality type for a role in supply chain management?   

36 mins – How long should you hold on to someone having invested in training? 

38 mins – The halo effect of carbon neutral strategies – i.e. how tree planting retains customers and staff 

44 mins - How do you attract and retain millennials for supply chain roles?   

49 mins - Are candidates arriving with the right skillset, could more be done at an educational level?  

54 mins - What labour challenges are particular to a B Corp?  

62 mins - South African brain drain.

64 - What are your top tips when moving to a successful digital workflow? 

68 – 4 Pines maintaining agility after buy out.  

70 – YF: consultancy, tech advice and how outsourcing your supply chain means you can redeploy your team on more ‘value-add' tasks.

73 - What are the challenges of retaining a highly skilled team?  

74 - How do you better engage a larger remote workforce across multiple locations?  

75 - What would you say to convince others to join the manufacturing supply chain?  

Watch or skim the highlights here

https://www.unleashedsoftware.com/blog/scr-manufacturing-staff

Factory Automation – What It Is & How To Implement 

⁠https://www.unleashedsoftware.com/blog/factory-automation-what-it-is-how-to-implement

Talk to one of our supply chain consultants – book a 20 min chat  

⁠https://engage.unleashedsoftware.com/book-a-chat-global⁠  

It would be fair to say the art of traditional demand forecasting has been tested over the last few years and what was a reasonably straight-forward process has many now scratching their heads.  

More border regulations, macroeconomics, eCommerce growth and siloed data have contributed to muddying the waters. Failing to predict demand, or poor forecasting, can bloat inventory or create stock outs and dampen a brands’ confidence in their capacity to manage without stockpiles. 

But getting demand forecasting right can lead to better supplier relationships, increased customer satisfaction, and more capital to grow and scale your business without the need for surplus stock as a buffer. 

Join five SME manufacturing experts as they to unpack their approach to demand forecasting and share their challenges and best practice. 

Scan the highlights here: 

The Experts: 

In this episode, the panel discuss: 

4 mins – Quick fire – What does demand forecasting me to you? 

8 mins – Harnessing bottom-up data 

15 mins – Katherine in ePOS data and human intervention 

17 mins – Correlations between predictions and cash availability  - John

20 mins – Mark on data accuracy 

21 mins – This is a team sport, don't let the accountant take over 

23 mins - Top-down curve balls 

25 mins – James’s pre-season forecast musings 

28 mins – Juggling long- and short-term planning 

30 mins - Nicki: Keep challenging the numbers 

33 mins – How are we shielding margins? Or are we?  

39 mins – ALC and FX tips from John 

41 mins – Small changes can have a big impact - Nicki 

44 mins – NPD and Promotions 

53 mins – Supplier relationships and China insights 

61 mins - One piece of parting advice for those struggling with their demand forecasting 

To watch the chat or scan the take-aways 

https://www.unleashedsoftware.com/blog/scr-demand-forecasting 

What is Demand Planning? [The Ultimate 2023 Guide] 

https://www.unleashedsoftware.com/blog/what-is-demand-planning 

Our latest Cash Flow and Over Stock Report 

https://www.unleashedsoftware.com/blog/cash-flow-overstock-report 

Talk to one of our supply chain consultants – book a 20 min chat 

https://engage.unleashedsoftware.com/book-a-chat-global 

Product businesses are holding more stock than ever before, creating new cash flow problems for manufacturers. In our latest Supply Chain Roundtable, four supply chain experts share their advice on avoiding insolvency during turbulent times.

Scan the highlights here:

In this episode:

3 mins – Quick fire

8 mins – Cash being held up in stock

16 mins – Innovation off the bat of the current climate

18 mins – Production efficiencies

21 mins – Learnings from load shedding in South Africa

23 mins – Planning and Average Landed Costs

26 mins – Don’t be lonely, network and collaborate

32 mins – Credit and getting paid faster

40 mins – Supplier relationships, call-off orders

47 mins – Data driven supply chain

60 mins – How to improve business visibility

65 mins – Pricing and margins

72 mins – A year from now...

77 mins – New equipment considerations

Watch the roundtable or scan the take-aways

7 Ways to improve cashflow in a manufacturing business

Talk to one of our supply chain consultants – book a 20 min chat