Providing a bespoke solution to the diverse arms of the business

Following key acquisitions in 2022 and 2023, the Gressingham group supplies duck, chicken, beef and pork to wholesalers, butchers and major supermarkets such as Tesco, Sainsbury and Waitrose. 

Starting with just 200 ducklings in 1989, Gressingham has had success after success and has continued to grow.

The challenge:

The Gressingham Group is a diversified food business with multiple subsidiaries operating across the UK. The group includes Peter Thompson, JF Edwards, Central Foods, Reids of Norwich, Ken Briggs and Gressingham Foods. Each business unit had distinct insurance histories and needs. 

With their group turnover expected to reach £450m in 2025, and with ambitions to grow further, ensuring they were protected was vital to help them reach their growth plans securely and confidently. 

Whilst some of the group, Peter Thompson, JF Edwards and Reids of Norwich, had credit insurance previously Gressingham Foods and Ken Briggs were uninsured.

Given their goals and the current market conditions, the Gressingham Group were interested in credit insurance but had reservations about the value of the product due to the service and cover the insured members of the group had previously received from other insurers. 

The Solution

Atradius worked closely with EFCIS, a specialist credit insurance broker, to better understand the business needs and motivations of the Gressingham Group.
 
By leveraging economies of scale to offer a more competitive and attractive premium structure, Atradius and EFCIS presented a unified strategic service proposition that emphasised long-term partnership, flexibility, and superior service.

Our strategic service offers:

• Bespoke service offering meticulously tailored to meet the needs of our customers
• Support customers' growth through acquisition 
• Bespoke policy design if needed
• Constant review of KPI’s in partnership with our Risk Underwriters
• Seamless collaboration among all commercial and risk parties, promoting an enhanced speed of service

Atradius was able to provide a single, tailor-made credit insurance solution for the entire Gressingham Group. This meant that the entire group could continue to grow with a safety net in place to protect them against the risk of bad debts. 

What Gressingham had to say:

“It was through Butcher's Hall that we first met EFCIS and Atradius. Some of our group had been insured before, but we didn't have a policy in place at Gressingham Foods. We were looking for insurance for our whole group to help mitigate risk and support our growth plans. After looking at different options with our broker, we chose Atradius because of their professional approach, genuine interest in our business, knowledge of the sector and their very strategic approach. We trust that Atradius will help support our growth plans.”

William Buchanan
Managing Director – Gressingham Foods