Patak’s extends to frozen meals

Patak’s, one of the country’s fastest growing brands is planning to

take its Indian sauce and spice range into the burgeoning frozen-meals

sector with the purchase of Scottish food firm Top Hat.

Dundee-based Top Hat has a turnover of pounds 7m and owns the Maharani

range of frozen Indian ready meals.

According to Mintel (March 1997), the frozen ready-meals market has

grown by 40% since 1991 and will be worth pounds 608m by the end of this

year. Frozen curry sales have risen 72.5% since 1992.

Patak’s marketing director Phil Lynas said there would be new product

development over the next year.

Earlier this month the company appointed Mitchell Patterson Grime

Mitchell to develop a new generic TV advertising campaign.

Patak’s already produces pickles, pastes, sauces, pappadams and ambient

ready meals. It produces over 150 tonnes of foods every day from four UK

factories.

The acquisition of Top Hat gives Patak’s a further factory and a company

with experience in developing frozen meals and supplying leading

multiple retailers.

Patak’s was started in the 1950s by the late Laxmishankar Pathak, who

passed on the business to his son Kirit in 1970.

The company remains family-owned but is now a multi-million pound

empire.

This year Patak’s sales grew by 33%, twice the rate of the Indian food

category as a whole.

The company was not available for comment on the acquisition but the

first production of Patak’s branded frozen meals is likely to begin in

October.

This article was first published on Marketing