Case study
Denhay Farms Ltd.
Managing Director
Opportunity
With a heritage stretching back to the 1940’s, Denhay Farms is one of the UK’s leading producers of high-quality bacon. With multiple Great Taste awards and a Royal Warrant to their name, Denhay have a great reputation for producing outstanding products which delight their consumers.
With the planned retirement of their longstanding Managing Director, Denhay partnered with Eden Search to appoint a successor who will continue the business’ legacy. This role is critical in shaping and delivering Denhay’s future growth vision, whilst upholding the high standards they have become synonymous with.
We could not have been happier with the service provided to us by Eden and particularly Morten Andresen. They took the time to understand our business and had a real feel for the candidates suitable for us. They gave the impression that ours was the only search they were conducting; while this cannot have been the case, it was very reassuring.
Their reach in sourcing candidates was impressive, and their initial interview and information gathering very thorough, a view also expressed by candidates themselves who were well briefed on Denhay when they were interviewed. We are delighted with the appointment we have made. Eden are worth every penny of their fee.
Henry Hood, Chair, Denhay Farms Ltd.
Our approach
Eden met with Denhay’s key stakeholders and visited their facility in Devon. The passion in the Denhay team was clear to see – a quality that the incoming Managing Director would need to reflect and build upon. Our search sought to identify senior professionals able to work in Devon, from a fresh food background with experience of dealing with multi-channel customers, including retail and foodservice.
It was essential to demonstrate a proven track record of driving business growth and empowering teams to support and sustain that growth. However, the one non-negotiable in the search criteria was the importance of finding a candidate who aligned with their long-held company values and beliefs and who would continue to lead the business with this at the forefront.
The results
Eden presented six outstanding candidates, each offering a close cultural alignment to the business and with the ability to deliver volume and value growth to Denhay. Following a robust interview process with Denhay’s board – including a site visit, two notable candidates were invited to present an outline of their vision for the business. Denhay selected a candidate who brought a significant amount of energy and enthusiasm to the role, along with their history of delivering transformative growth to businesses.