BELFAST-based popcorn and fruit crisps producer Food Stories has gobbled up a contract from Spain’s HiperDino supermarket chain which will see its Cloud Corn branded popcorn to shoppers in the Canary Islands and through its on-line shop.
HiperDino has listed two Cloud Corn popcorn varieties - sweet and salty and sweet chilli BBQ - from Food Stories, adding to its success in supplying its snacks to Canada, Belgium, the Netherlands and Sweden.
Food Stories was established in 2014 by Michael Heaslip and currently employs four people. Its popcorn range was launched in March last year using original recipes created by Mr Heaslip, who was previously involved in artisan food distribution.
He said: “I was thrilled when the HiperDino buying team decided to list our popcorn following extensive taste testing. They loved the flavours, lightness and quality of our popcorn and will now be carrying in their hypermarkets in what is another important export success for the company.
“It is a marketplace that is often forgotten and attracts around 10 million visitors, mostly from the UK, Ireland and other parts of Europe, annually in addition to a population of over two million. The islands are extremely popular as a year-round holiday destination for visitors from the UK and Ireland.”
The business with HiperDino was brokered by their distribution partner in Spain but Invest NI played an invaluable role according to Mr Heaslip.
He said: “Their guidance and practical support in pinpointing and lining up potential distribution contacts and knowledge of the market have helped us make this first step into the Spanish market. This support facilitated the discussions which led to what is our first contract in the Canaries.”
Founded in 1996, HiperDino is part of Dinosol Supermercados, the biggest retailer on the holiday islands, which was established in 1978 as a family business by brothers Jose Abraham and Andres Dominguez. The group also operates a chain of smaller shops and is collaborating with BP on a series of forecourt stores.
Mr Heaslip formed Cloud Corn to develop opportunities he had developed in international markets from the significant growth in popcorn.
As part of his focus on exports, he decided that all the nutritional information on the packaging should be in six languages – English, French, Spanish, German, Dutch and Italian.
