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As you may have noticed, we have given the Simply Doughnuts website an overhaul. It went live on 1^st March 2022.

Our aim was to create a site that better reflected our uniqueness, and our increasing scale and capacity. We also wanted it to give a clearer sense of our ethos. As a result, we now have dedicated pages that explain the benefits that retailers can expect from our long-life products, our work in international markets, and our ongoing efforts to minimise waste.

The new site also showcases a recent change in our corporate branding. We hope you’ll agree that the new colours, graphics and photography give a better impression of our products and modernity.

We’ll be expanding the site in the coming months, with new stories, case studies, new product launches and more, so please remember to keep checking back in with us.

For well over a year now, we’ve had a productive partnership with Bobby’s Foods; a relationship that has been producing excellent results. Back in September 2021, for example, the company won the ‘Product Launch of the Year’ award at the 2021 Retail Industry Awards, as we explained in a news post at the time.

The award related to our Classic Mini Ring Doughnuts, available in store and branded by Bobby’s Foods as “7 Mini Classics.”

Much more recently, on 10th February 2022, a team from Bobby’s came to visit us to look over our production processes and to see our BRC AA-rated quality assurance systems in action.

It was a very enjoyable event, and a great opportunity to share ideas and plan for the coming months. A second team will visit on 17th February.

On 8th February, we received an email from the organisers of the North West FSB ‘Celebrating Small Business Awards 2022,’  confirming that we had been shortlisted for the Business and Product Innovation Award category.

The North West final will take place on Friday 11th March at The Midland Hotel in Manchester.

A full list of finalists can be found on the FSB Awards website.

In January 2022, we received official notice from Brand Reputation Compliance Global Standards (BRCGS) that Simply Doughnuts had again been awarded a top AA rating.

BRCGS – formerly known as the British Retail Consortium – delivered its rating following detailed site inspections.

Founded in the UK, the organisation operates internationally and notes that it operates “the most rigorous third party certification scheme of its type.” It writes that it promotes “best practice in manufacturing, helping to provide reassurance that products and services are high quality, legal and safe.”

Simply Doughnuts has worked with BRCGS / BRC for many years now and has consistently maintained the high standards demanded by customers throughout the UK and beyond.

In January 2022, keen to do more to promote corporate social responsibility, Simply Doughnuts announced its membership of Sedex.

Sedex is a global, not-for-profit membership organisation that is home to one of the world’s largest collaborative platforms for sharing data on supply chains. It is used by more than 38,000 members in over 150 countries to manage performance around labour rights, health & safety, the environment and business ethics.

For over twelve years Sedex has been developing technology, tools and partnerships that enable many of the world’s leading brands and suppliers to monitor and report on responsible practices.

The organisation notes that “Being a member of Sedex is a sign of Simply Doughnuts’ willingness to share information and to use this information to help manage and improve ethical standards within the supply chain.”

Announcing the company’s membership, managing director Shiraz Master said: “Like many businesses, we want to succeed in more than just commercial terms. We want Simply Doughnuts to be a force for good; to operate responsibly and to support the movement towards more transparency and more ethical behaviour in supply chains. Becoming a member of Sedex takes us another big step in that direction.”

Here’s a short video message from everyone here at Simply Doughnuts.

On 14^th December, Preston Muslim Girls High School held an event designed to raise awareness of breast cancer. Staff and pupils wanted to do something to support the needs of people who are suffering from the disease and families that have been affected by it, and to support ongoing efforts to detect and treat it.

There are a reported 55,000 case of breast cancer annually, and over 11,000 deaths. Consequently, a week before the event, when one of the school’s teachers wrote to place an order for some doughnuts to be distributed on the day, we decided instead to donate them.

The donation helped the school in its efforts to increase awareness of the disease and to raise funds for the Pink Ribbon Foundation. The organisation is a trust that funds the work of cancer-related charities around the UK. More details about how to support its work can be found here.

A few short weeks before Christmas, we received a letter from Lancashire Fire & Rescue Service, asking if we would be able to support a forthcoming charitable event.

Station Manager Ian Nelson wrote to tell us about a drive-through Santa Experience that was to be held on 11^th December at Preston Fire Station. Organised by the Fire Service, The Prince’s Trust and the Fire Cadets, the event would provide a memorable outing for children with additional needs who might typically find it difficult to attend more traditional Santa’s Grottos.

Designed with Covid safety-measures in mind, the event would allow children to attend from the comfort of their cars. However, with Christmas trees, decorations, gift-wrapped parcels and coloured lights, the organisers were pulling out all the stops to make it as festive, fun and memorable as possible.

We were delighted to help, and agreed to supply 200 tubs of doughnuts to be handed out to visitors on the day.

The donation went down very well and, shortly after the event, the organisers sent us a selection of photos.

The event also featured a collection for the Fire Fighters Charity. The organisation supports the mental, physical and social needs of all serving and retired fighters and their dependants. Anyone wishing to support the charity can make a donation via its website or via a dedicated JustGiving page. The charity also raises funds via its online shop.

We were recently contacted by a clinical support worker at the Acute Neurology Unit at Salford Royal Foundation Trust. Part of NHS Northern Care Alliance, the unit supports patients with neurological conditions from across Greater Manchester.

Each year, staff like to give out a small collection of presents to patients who have to spend Christmas Day in the ward. Under normal conditions, staff raise funds for this via donations, raffles and proceeds from the ward’s tuck shop, but safety restrictions during the Covid pandemic made the usual approaches unworkable. Consequently, the team decided to contact potential supporters in the North West that might be willing to contribute something to these Christmas packs.

We were, of course, very happy to help. We have long been a keen supporter of the NHS and all its teams who do such valuable work. We therefore agreed to donate four cases of doughnuts – enough for every patient on the 30-bed ward, plus a few left over for the ANU staff to enjoy.

As the photo (above) shows, they went down very well…

On the evening of Wednesday 10th November 2021, our MD, Shiraz Master attended a royal reception at Windsor Castle, hosted by HRH The Prince of Wales.

The event took place to recognise the winners of the Queen’s Award for Enterprise in 2020 and 2021. Simply Doughnuts won last year under the category of Innovation.

The evening was also attended by the Princess Royal, the Countess of Wessex, the Duke of Kent, the Duke and Duchess of Gloucester, and Princess Alexandra.

In more normal times, the reception for the 2020 winners would have taken place the same year but, given the risks associated with the Covid pandemic, the event was deferred until 2021. Consequently, the evening was attended by winners from both years.

“It was a real privilege to attend,” said Shiraz. “It was, of course, an honour to meet and talk to HRH The Prince of Wales, and in such impressive surroundings. It was also really good to get a chance to meet other award winners and learn how the title has changed their businesses.

“For us, the Queen’s Award for Enterprise has certainly opened many doors and helped us to display a credibility that is important to so many of our clients. Winning was a pivotal point in the company’s development, and the Awards event was a great opportunity to celebrate and to reflect on that.”