Supplier Spotlight: Booker

The latest instalment in our supplier spotlight series, which offers a snapshot of key hospitality suppliers, focuses on food and drink wholesaler Booker. 

 

Leigh Baker joined the company in 2009 as area manager and was promoted to his current position of customer proposition director for foodservice in March last year.

 

The wholesaler serves around one million customers through its 192 UK cash and carry branches and eight distribution sites, and it also own retail outlets Budgens, Londis and Premier. 

 

How would you describe your product portfolio in five words?

Broad, quality-driven, trusted, value-led, chef-focused.

 

Who are your products aimed at?

Anything from independent cafés to restaurants, pubs, takeaways, hotels, quick-serve outlets, dark kitchens, contract caterers, care homes and leisure operators. Our product ranges are designed to support everyone, from single‑site independents to high‑volume, multi-site businesses.

 

Our range spans thousands of product lines, from fresh, chilled and frozen food to dry goods and non-food supplies, backed by a butchery service and specialist fresh produce offer. Combined with our premium drinks division, Venus Wine and Spirit Merchants, we provide a true one-stop shop for hospitality and catering operators of all sizes.

 

What challenges do your products help operators meet?

We know it’s a challenging marketplace at the moment. Operators are facing increasing pressure around cost control, consistency, labour availability and changing customer expectations. Booker’s branded and own-brand product selection is based on rigorous insight and helps customers simplify menus, manage margins, reduce waste and maintain quality in high‑pressure, high‑volume kitchens.

 

How do your products deliver value for money?

We launched our Value Hero price investment scheme last month across all branches and online, which consists of 221 lines across multiple categories. We also offer customers exclusive savings on energy, oil recycling, waste, subscriptions to TNT Sports and other services.

 

How do you support sustainability?

Our products are sourced responsibly and our own-brand range is developed with product transparency and waste-reducing formats in mind. We also work to streamline supply chains, helping customers cut complexity, waste and unnecessary cost from their operations.

 

Waste management is a growing priority, especially with new legislation on the horizon. Our partners offer our customers up to 11% off waste collection, while our free oil-recycling service pays operators £6 for every 20 litres collected. Energy is another major pressure, and we help customers explore anything from solar installations with no upfront costs to free-to-fit EV chargers that can generate a additional revenue.

 

We also recently hit a donation milestone of 25 million meals with FareShare, where surplus food from Booker’s estate is distributed to charities and communities nationwide, tackling food insecurity and reducing waste.

 

What are your brand values?

We are customer‑led – everything starts with real customer needs; a trusted foodservice partner – reliable, consistent and credible; and commercially focused – helping customers grow sustainably and profitably.

 

What food trends are you seeing?

We’re seeing strong growth in frozen and fresh own brand, value‑engineered ranges, menu simplification and global cuisine. Operators are focusing on products that save time, perform consistently and deliver value, alongside growing demand for digital tools and tailored loyalty offers.

 

Can you share any hints about new products?

We’re looking at expanding our own-brand portfolio, and launching menu‑ready and cuisine‑specific products. Our teams are working to refresh some of our key categories – so watch this space.

 

How do you ensure high customer service standards?

Booker’s nationwide branch network and specialist foodservice teams – including more than 20% of the UK’s master butchers and 140 support managers – offer expert guidance on menus, trends and inspiration. 

 

What are your brand’s unique selling points?

Booker combines national scale with local service, with 190 branches throughout the UK. We employ master butchers, specialist greengrocers and dedicated support managers who bring real expertise and hands-on guidance to our customers. Few wholesalers can match that depth of specialism alongside the breadth of a national network.