Food for Thought

Perween Warsi, both of whose sons attended Repton, is one of the most successful female entrepreneurs in the food supply industry today. She has received numerous accolades, including the CBE and MBE, and in 1996 was awarded the title “Woman Entrepreneur of the World Award”. She recently told her story in the third of this term’s Upper Sixth Form Lectures.

Mrs Warsi arrived in England in 1975, when she was 21 years old. Noticing the quality of Indian food in supermarkets was disappointing, she started up her own kitchen, making finger foods to her own recipes. With an astonishing start-up capital of just £2.50, she visited influential supermarkets such as ASDA, impressing them with her cooking ability. She went on to establish the hugely successful S&A Foods, where as founder and Chief Executive she has built a thriving business with a current turnover of £75 million per year and over 700 employees. S&A Foods now operates in the UK, France and Belgium, producing 1.4 million meals per week.

Mrs Warsi revealed that “innovation is the lifeblood” of her business, which is always asking the question “What do consumers want next?” She stressed that generating new business ideas is crucial in establishing and maintaining a strong market position, which in turn makes it much easier to attract new consumers.

As well as talking about her business, Mrs. Warsi also offered the Sixth Form valuable advice for life as a whole, emphasising the importance of positive thinking and emphasising that in her opinion “life is a journey, not a destination”. Successful relationships, she argued, must be based on “honesty and trust”. In her business she puts “people first”, because without the satisfaction and motivation of her employees the business would not be as productive or efficient.

When recruiting, she looks for “passion and hunger for success” in potential employees. “Follow your passion” was her keynote message, show “common sense, confidence, real determination, and always be open to learning”. Sound advice for a year group fast approaching their final examinations and the world of work and study beyond Repton.