7 brands in 7 days
Setting up a brand is a labour of love, passion and persistence. Welcome to 7 Brands In 7 Days, our chance to shine a spotlight on up and coming brands. Some are very shiny and new, and some are a couple of years into the running.
Welcome to Wonder Chup, a low sugar and salt challenger ketchup produced in Kent by powerhouse mum Elise. Supported by Waitrose and Partners, what we love about this brand is the way Elise is going about banging the drum about hidden sugar and salt in condiments. Most ketchup has 4g sugar per squirt – yet this is made with no sugar, salt, sweeteners or additives with extra lycopene, a health-giving nutrient found in the tomatoes.
Swapping out habitual products to benefit our immune systems is a trend we’re seeing in many categories – let us know what you think if you give Wonder Chup a go. The kids in our team went for it with gusto!
Did you know for a healthy gut you need to be aiming for 30 plant-based foods a week?
Gut health awareness is becoming more mainstream. It was one of the key trends in our Health Report for 2020 so it’s no surprise that Waitrose and Partners has spotted the opportunity to help people across the country get an easy way to good gut health. They have started stocking our second brand of the week to watch, Bio and Me, set up by Dr Megan Rossi, which is a range of prebiotic cereals of 15 different plant-based super ingredients. We won’t be surprised if we see Bio & Me across more retailers soon.
Today’s showcase is London startup Jelly Drops. Jelly Drops launched in the summer to help boost the water intake of the elderly and 850,000 Britons living with dementia that have been amongst the hardest hit by the pandemic. Designed to boost water intake, they're made from 95% water, are sugar-free, vegan and come in 6 flavours.
What we like about this brand is it’s a real solution to a problem with the ability to improve the lives of people affected by dementia by helping them to hydrate more often and independently. They don’t burst in the mouth, they are solid – pretty clever stuff.
“In a world full of sugar rushes and sweet quick fixes, we're standing up for slow, rich, savoury flavour.” Going beyond sugar in the snack bar category is no mean feat. Yet The Savourists have established a high protein, savoury range using unami-rich ingredients.
Supported by Plane Organic, we like the way the founders got fed up with the saturated sweet protein bar market and have gone out of their way to create a brand that truly offers a choice. Flavours are Black Olive & Nori Seaweed and Sundried Tomato & Herb, made from pumpkin seeds, chia, flax and sunflower seeds.
Did you think you knew good honey? The founders of Black Bee Honey set up fifteen years ago after feeling annoyed with all the tasteless honey they found on supermarket shelves. They're passionate about protecting the native British honey bee, the Black Bee, and created raw, unblended honey.
British Heather Honey is known as the British Manuka, billed as having a “toffee colour, crunchy texture and an aromatic, smoky flavour”. It also contains vitamins A, C, D and E and has “high concentrations” of vitamin B that would “be lost in the pasteurisation process of commercial products”.
Ooxford University recently published research that showed that honey is better than usual care for relieving the symptoms of upper respiratory tract symptoms. Sounds like Black Bee Honey are onto a winner!
Simply Cook is not a new brand, but has really come into its own this year as meal planning and home cooking has increased.
A direct-to-consumer subscription business, the brand is now in the Tesco incubator programme and shoppers can also pick up a small range from Asda, Waitrose and Coop. The beauty of this brand is its simplicity – you can store the recipe kits in the cupboard for a while, wonder what to have for tea and these give you all the inspiration you need. They tell you what fresh ingredients to buy and anyone can cook using the easy recipe cards in 20 minutes.
Qnola uk promises a quick, healthy breakfast (as an alternative to commercial cereals), and is made from British quinoa. It provides sustainable energy, is high in protein and even higher in fibre, and is designed to get you functioning in the morning.
Eaten with yoghurt, milk or dairy-free alternatives, or sprinkle on porridge, smoothie bowls or smoothies. Created by model and wellbeing practitioner Danielle Copperman, we can find Qnola at @wholefoodsuk, @selfridgesfood and online.
A no-faff, positive swap in the morning rush (although the brand is a slow morning believer!) is certainly something we need in our houses.