East Riding speciality food business wins contract with French department store Galeries Lafayette

Cartwright & Butler, a provider of speciality foods and beverages, has expanded its presence in Europe with a new order for French department store Galeries Lafayette.

Based in Gilberdyke in the East Riding of Yorkshire, the business secured a contract to supply its speciality sweet and savoury biscuits, preserves and chutneys to Galeries Lafayette department stores in Paris, Marseille and Nice.

This contract win adds to Cartwright & Butler’s existing export trade with Europe via similar orders with department stores El Corte Ingles in Madrid, Spain and KaDaWe in Berlin, Germany.

The business also sells products in Denmark, Greece, Italy, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Portugal, Sweden, Switzerland and Norway.

Tony Arnett, managing director of Cartwright & Butler, revealed that the business’ overseas trade began following an inward trade mission organised by UK Trade & Investment (now the Department for International Trade) four years ago which introduced the business to buyers from El Corte Ingles.

He said: “After meeting the representatives of El Corte Ingles on the inward trade mission organised by UKTI, we began selling overseas. In just four years with subsequent orders such as that for Galeries Lafayette, our export business has grown at a phenomenal pace.”

Founded in 1981, Cartwright & Butler was acquired by the Arnett family in 2010. It became part of the family’s food distributor Moordale Foods, founded by John and Charles Arnett in 1977 and now employing 25 staff with sales in excess of £8m.

Cartwright & Butler products are available in department stores Fenwick, Harrods and Selfridges, Waitrose, independent speciality food retailers and hotels, restaurants and duty free outlets.

Mark Robson, Department for International Trade (DIT) regional director for Yorkshire and the Humber, said: “The value of Yorkshire and the Humber businesses meeting potential customers on trade missions both at home and overseas can never be underestimated and often translates into valuable orders such as that for Cartwright & Butler in Span and France.

“We’re genuinely pleased to have played a part in helping Tony and his colleagues to launch what has become an outstandingly successful export business.”