How and why former Accolade chief Paul Schaafsma has taken control at Broadland Wineries
By Richard Siddle
Paul Schaafsma, the former chief executive of Accolade Wines, is returning to the wine industry in a role that will help put the bulk wine sector firmly in the spotlight of global trading.
Schaafsma’s decision to take up the role of chief executive of Broadland Wineries, one of the leading bottling and packing operators in the UK, might have surprised those in the mainstream wine industry that associate him with developing big wine brands such as Hardy’s and McGuigan during his time with Australian Vintage.
But scratch below the surface of the move and it reflects the huge changes that have taken place over the last 10 years amongst traditional bottlers in becoming leading brand developers and suppliers in their own right.
Broadland Wineries, along with Lanchester Wines, part of the wider Lanchester Group that owns Greencfroft Bottling and traditional packing business, Kingsland Drinks, have emerged in recent years in the UK alone to be major partners and suppliers of the major supermarket chains and national pub, hotel and bar chains.
Capable of being able to continue to pack in any format from bottle, to pouch, to can (which Greencroft Bottling handles separately rom Lanchester Wines). But also increasingly becoming brand developers in their own right, either creating their own exclusive bands to bring to market, or working with their partners to producer private label and bespoke brands for them.
Schaafsma is ideally placed to not only bring his experience of managing a global wine business, but particularly in building up both existing and new brands and finding the right solutions for different channels and consumer needs.
As he says himself the opportunity to join Broadland Wines was the right business at the right time.
“It was such a great fit,” said Schaafsma. Both for him but also for Mark Lansley, the former chief executive of Broadland Wineries who has now moved to a chairman’s role. He needed someone who could take the business on to the next level and Schaafsma was “looking for an opportunity to build and grow a business, so it was great”.
He explained how the move came together: "When I left Accolade Wines there was a period of time when I could not work in the wine industry. So I started a dialogue with Mark after that time. He has done a fantastic job over the last 10 years in creating one of the premier packing facilities in the UK.”
But, added Schaafsma, “got to a point where he recognised he needed to bring in someone who can ensure the business was relevant right across the trade, can grow the profile and bring in the right brands”.
“You think about the fit and it just made sense.”
Under Lansley Broadland Wineries has grown 20% year-on-year since 2006 to become a £60m plus turnover business. It is currently able to pack up to 50m litres a year with the capacity to go to 60m litres from what its BRC Grade AA+ winery facility.
“Mark and I have got a plan in terms of where we want to get to,” added Schaafsma.
Huge potential
He said the scale and potential at Broadland Wineries is also what made the role so appealing.
“It blew me away. I had an expectation of what I was going to see, but I walked in and thought, wow, this is good as I have seen in the UK in terms of quality, machinery, culture.”
He added: “In terms of a one stop shop we can do private label, exclusive label, branded in every format.
It’s clear Schaafsma will look to bring in new skills and talent so that it can broaden its horizons even more. He explained it was all about “how we make what is already an exceptional team even better with the right sort of skills sets and resources for appealing to all customer segments”.
We can expect to see Broadland Wineries expand its business by developing more New World brands. Schaafsma pointed specifically to Australia, New Zealand, South Africa and Chile.
“We want to take on agency brands, strong brands from similar countries that hopefully find the packaging facilities appealing. Packing in the UK and getting the right cost of goods is so critical in terms of being relevant in this market. We are as competitive as anyone out there at the moment.”
It is a route that Broadland Wineries is already well on the road to taking. It has invested hugely in consumer trends analysis in recent years in order to keep itself ahead of what the market might be expecting.
As Lansley told VINEX earlier in the year. “You have to understand who your shopper is. Only then can you start to think about creating wine brands they might want to buy. By starting with the consumer and knowing how they shop and why, you have a lot more chance to maximise profits rather than base a new line on the fact you can access a few million litres of cheap Chilean Merlot.”
For Lansley it has always been about making the business as professional as possible and “adding value at every stage of the process we are involved in”.
He is confident that “once the complementary skills sets are in place” it will be even more “relevant for all the supermarkets and larger national groups around the UK”.
Overseas opportunities
Lansley has spoken in the past about expanding its bottling capabilities overseas, particularly in the US. But Schaafsma said it needs to be at the right time.
“Mark has a desire to establish
bottling facility in the US at some point. My comment to him is that once the sales justify it we can talk about a bottling line in America.”
It is, though, running its own sales team in the US and looking to develop a wider distribution network for its brands in more channels of the US market.
“There is already some strong growth in the last 12 months in the US.”
It is also operating a similar sales operation in Sweden.
International expansion was very much part of Lansley’s strategy to achieve the type of growth targets he had for the business. It will be interesting to see how far these now develop and whether a bigger branded business in the UK will be able to achieve some of those growth figures instead.
But by working in other markets it has given Broadland added insights in to how consumers shop, behave and think in different countries. How one style of wine, for example, is not suitable for all markets.
Developing an international business also means it is not 100% reliant on a UK business model, which might be the right strategy to have once Brexit is firmly in place.
But all that is to come. For now Schaafsma is pleased to be back in the game.
“It’s very early days and I’m really excited and positive about it,” he said.