We’re Wayne Starkey, 42 from Blackpool, and James Whiting, 30 from Birmingham, co-founders of an established Nottingham-based healthy food and drink brand called The Skinny Food Co - launched in May 2018. We were originally inspired to create the range after witnessing diabetic family members forgo their favourite foods, with a clear lack of alternatives available to them.

From humble beginnings, Wayne grew-up in a one-bed council flat in Blackpool and received one GCSE throughout his education, but my work rate and passion for helping others live healthier lives, spurred on The Skinny Food Co’s success.

For James, he established himself as a bright spark through an early career pathway at established healthy food delivery service company, MuscleFood, working his way up the managerial ranks – he is open in saying though, it was personal tragedy that has since fuelled his own entrepreneurial path after in 2014 he and his partner lost their son as a stillbirth.

James’ drive and determination led him to be recognised by Forbes on their 2021 ’30 Under 30 list’.

What inspired you to launch your business and what is the end goal?

Wayne: We were originally inspired to create the range, both having diabetic family members forced to go without their favourite foods. There was a distinct lack of alternatives available to them.

Initially, we launched with healthy table sauces, including BBQ sauce, Ketchup and Chip Shop Curry. All products were gluten free, fat free, dairy free, vegan friendly and diabetic friendly with no added sugars.

The demand was incredible and we sold over one million bottles in the first year. We now sell over 250 different products, from sauces and syrups to high protein, low sugar snacks, cooking sprays, flavoured coffees, Fakeaway sauces, meals and more. I would say though, it still feels like we’re only just getting started!

James: I wouldn’t say it’s an ‘end goal’ per se, but we want to bring consumers a healthier alternative for every item you can think of to have in your pantry. We’d love to grow 250 products to 500 in the next five years in achieving in that. Ultimately, we want to help more and more people live healthier lives through our products.

What’s the biggest lesson you’ve learnt so far as an entrepreneur?

Wayne: It has to be patience, and I truly believe everything’s about timing. Never give up and don’t take a no to mean failure. There’s always going to be a yes just around the corner.

James: I think for me it’s learning that you can’t do everything by yourself. For so long Wayne and I tried to do that, but you have to bring other people in with different skillsets. It can be difficult to get to that stage where you relinquish control, but you have to let go and play to your strengths and weaknesses.

What keeps you motivated as an entrepreneur when you hit bumps in the road?

Wayne: For family, everything I do is for my family. It helps that I genuinely enjoy what I do as well!

James: To echo Wayne, yes, you’re always going to have ups and downs, but when you’re passionate about something and love what you do, that gets you through. It allows you to remember the better times and to understand good things will always be around the corner with the right attitude.

How well versed were you in the planning and strategic growth of your business? Did this come easy to you?

Wayne: Nothing comes easy, and I think for us if anything it’s been sheer hard work that’s got us to where we are today. Also about believing in our products – we’ve always had that belief, so if you can then get your distribution right, you’re going to set yourself up for success.

James: Having great products certainly helps, but I also think our growth has been driven by a willingness to get into the nitty gritty. It’s a challenge to scale, and so we’ve also recently started to build out our senior management team to support our growth ambitions.

Working with a co-founder can be tricky, so understanding and compromise is important. How have you both found the process of building a business together? What makes it work?

Wayne: We’ve worked together for five years now, so I’d say we know each other pretty much inside out. I think bouncing off each other is important. I can honestly say we’ve not actually had an argument or falling out. We’re pretty in tune and have learnt to play to each other’s strengths and weaknesses.

James: Definitely agree that a big part of being a team is playing to each other’s strengths and weaknesses. I think we’re quite lucky in that we have different, yet complimentary skillsets. Wayne is more so design and branding, while marketing is more so my thing.

Of course you’ll always have different opinions and ideas, but I’d say we have that understanding to meet in the middle and always find the best solution.

What does your business offer its target audience?

James: Put simply, it’s great tasting, healthier food and drink alternatives. So absolutely, it’s for vegetarians, vegans, diabetics and those with allergies and dietary restrictions, but widely speaking it’s for anyone looking to improve their health and wellbeing.

Wayne: Our products are being enjoyed by a growing number of health-conscious consumers as they offer a simple way to reduce fat, sugar and calorific content without compromise on taste.

With all the success stories around entrepreneurship and how innovative people have to be to take the leap. How do you think you’ve innovated your sector and why?

Wayne: I think it’s been about bringing consumers products that satisfy both wants and needs. We noticed a gap in the market initially in terms of great tasting, low sugar alternatives for diabetics, but that’s truly snowballed. Especially so with the pandemic, I think everyone has become more health conscious. I think where we’ve really then innovated is to not get comfortable with the products we already have, and in building a sense of community among our customers.

Our repeat order rate is at 47% which is fantastic, but that’s because consumers know we’re constantly working hard behind the scenes to bring them even more great tasting, healthier alternative products.

James: I agree. To echo Wayne, I do feel we’ve tapped into a market at a pivotal time where people are starting to take better care of themselves, and are becoming increasingly aware of the rising problem that is obesity.

What plans do you have for The Skinny Food Co over the next two years?

James: A lot of our time, roughly 80% of it, is focused on NPD – it’s a real team effort and something we’re constantly working on. Our plan over the next two years is to bring at least five new products to market every month. Regarding stockists, our products are currently found in leading supermarkets and retailers, including Morrisons, Lidl, Holland & Barrett, Co-op, Home Bargains, TK Maxx, SPAR, Aldi and B&M, but we’re constantly looking to grow our retail presence. 2022 is already looking very exciting!

Wayne: International expansion is definitely also a focus. At present international sales contribute a single digit percentage.

We want to bring this figure up into double figures as the immediate goal. We feel the appetite is certainly there (pardon the pun!), and last year started to expand our retail presence into the likes of South Africa, Australia, New Zealand, Kuwait and Qatar. The US and China are territories we’ll definitely be focusing on.”

Any new product launches we should know about?

Wayne: As previously mentioned, we’re constantly working on new products every month. In December alone we launched additional flavours to our popular Barista Coffee Shot’s range (English Toffee, Gingerbread and Cinnamon), new Skinny Cookies (Coconut, Chocolate and Peanut), as well as five fresh low-sugar, low-calorie cocktail mixes.

James: In addition to the above, perhaps our most exciting December launch was our new Low Carb, High Protein Sliced Bread – we really listen to our consumers and feel it has the potential to become one of our bestselling products. Not only is the bread just 125 calories per two slices with less than 1g of fat/sugar, but it also contains a huge 14g of protein and has a long shelf life of several months, so it also ticks boxes for those who are increasingly conscious about food waste! A game changer.

Does your company help the community that you’re located in?

James: Giving back to the local community is something that’s really important to us. In 2021, we supported local charity, Nottingham Hospitals Charity. We presented them with a £56,000 cheque mainly raised through our fantastic customers who made donations by ‘rounding-up’ the price of their orders, or by making a separate donation. The money raised helped Nottingham Hospital pay for vital specialist equipment, and to continue to enhance their facilities.

Wayne: That was definitely a great moment for us to give back! From a sporting standpoint, 2021 was also very exciting. We partnered with two sports teams – Rugby League’s Wigan Warriors, and closer to home, the EFL’S Nottingham Forest FC. Initiatives such as game day sampling have helped us get even closer to our customers within the local community, and I think what’s particularly exciting is to be able to reach and engage consumers in a slightly different way. It’s educating that there are healthier, accessible alternatives out there.

Why do you think your business has had such a positive impact across your industry?

Wayne: We’ve had a positive impact on our industry as we’re in a position where our products can truly change the lives of people. With The Skinny Food Co consumers can still incorporate their favourite ‘treats’ into their diet, and so I think people are realising their goals are attainable – whether that’s losing weight, reducing sugar or switching to a plant-based diet, it can be done in a non-restrictive way.

James: I’m incredibly proud of what we’ve achieved as a company to date – it feels good to be making a positive impact and difference to the lives of so many. I think it’s enabling ‘food freedom’ essentially that has driven such a positive impact. We’re excited for the future!