When Andrew Wilson graduated from catering college he worked in a hotel restaurant, but realised it wasn't for him. "I wasn't a very good chef and I hated working nights and weekends." So he switched to contract catering cooking in companies' staff restaurants.
Wilson spent the 1980s working his way up through the management of large catering companies. He met his future wife, Carolyne Vale (pictured), in 1988 at Sutcliffe Catering. The pair's climb up the corporate ladder ended when they joined a breakaway firm, Nelson Hind, set up by two former bosses. "We played a fundamental part in the company's success and began to think it would be nice if we were doing it for ourselves." When Nelson Hind was sold to Avenance, the pair decided to act.
"We had learned a lot from Nelson Hind. But whereas Hind grew very quickly, we decided we wanted to focus on quality of contracts rather than size." They decided their new firm, Wilson Vale, would be a niche caterer, concentrating on lucrative law-firm and private-school contracts.
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Thanks to some "tough domestic decisions", they saved £50,000 in capital. "We were offered loans and equity deals, but we decided to stick with our own funds. It was the best decision we ever made as it meant we kept full control of the business."
On the way to hand in his resignation, Wilson was phoned by a prospective client. "After years of sales approaches, the client was finally ready to negotiate." Wilson explained his situation and the client agreed to wait until Wilson formed his new company. Fortunately, the split with Avenance was amicable.
The new customer, a Swedish paper-manufacturing company, wanted a staff restaurant to feed 150 employees in Dunstable. "It was an ideal client because it was prepared to pay for quality." The pair hired a regional manager while Wilson looked for new business. "We invested in the infrastructure of the company right from the start as we wanted to grow the business."
The move paid off as Wilson added six new clients, while Vale managed the company's operations. Yet the growth plans weren't cheap to put in place and by the end of 2002 the company had burned through 80% of its capital. "Even the quickest contracts can take four months to agree. Food has a big effect on employee morale and companies are cautious about changing suppliers."
Fortunately, new clients signed up. "We didn't compete on price, we were often the most expensive quote. But we were realistic about the cost of providing a high-quality service. We weren't picky about where a client was, but we were selective about the type of companies we worked with."
By the end of 2007, sales hit £8m and the firm hired more than 200 staff. The selective approach to clients paid off during the financial crisis. Sales reached £12m by 2009. "Several companies asked us to create cost-saving plans but when they thought about the effect on their staff [didn't] pursue them. When you are cutting staff and wages, food is a cost-effective way to keep workers happy."
Last year sales reached £13m and the couple, both aged 51, now involve their 21-year-old daughter in the business.
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