Plant-based meat alternative brand, This, has made quite the name for itself since its launch in 2019.
As the largest independently owned brand in the sector and the fastest growing plant-based brand in the UK, This is one of the few players still growing in an industry facing sky-high inflation and rising production costs.
The brand has bold ambitions to make “meat-free the norm”, according to co-founder and co-CEO Andy Shovel, and last month secured investment from ITV, which has agreed to subscribe for £1.5m of shares in the company, with the option to subscribe for two additional tranches of £1.5m each, in return for advertising inventory across its channels.
Grocery Gazette looks at what sets This apart from its plant-based rivals and delves into its future plans.
The birth of This
This co-founder and co-CEO’s Andy Shovel and Pete Sharman
The brand launched at a time that “meat-free options in the UK were not necessarily the most compelling for meat eaters,” Shovel explains.
The initial inspiration for This came from the US where Beyond Meat and Impossible were producing and selling plant-based meat.
“We were inspired, and we decided to get to work on research and development and commit to the project.”
Shovel says he wanted to make the food industry more sustainable, however, his ambitions have since grown.
“I’m now getting out of bed because I genuinely believe in having fewer animals in the food system,” he says.
The brand has secured much funding.
Over the past four years, This has raised £8.7m in seed funding from VC investors and an initial crowd raise of more than £4m on the Seedrs platform in 2020, as well as an £11m series A round of funding in 2021, followed by £15m in a series B funding round.
Sales jumped 11% to £13m in the 12 months to 31 December 2022 – at a time when some of the biggest brands in the sector are struggling. Beyond Meat sales plunged by almost a third in its last quarter.
It must be pointed out however that This’ operating losses did widen from £5.9m to £9.8m year on year, as the business continues to prioritise growth over profits.
Standing out from the plant-based players
Food innovation and quality is how This aims to stand out from the crowd of plant-based rivals.
This does its research and development in house, which Shovel says helps it “drive higher quality”.
“We’ve got a team of 20 scientists who work full time with us, which means we can push the envelope in terms of the quality of research and development.
“These amazing innovators in our company are full-time investigating ways to make the food more exciting and more like realistic animal-based products.”
Shovel adds that by developing products based around the idea of hyper-realism, it allows the consumer to “enjoy the taste, the texture and the mouthfeel much more than competitors” products.
On the marketing side, Shovel says that This has a “high risk appetite”.
“We held a state funeral for bacon in the streets of London for the launch of out plant-based bacon. We can be quite entertaining and I think people have enjoyed a lot of the stunts we’ve done.”
Although animal ethics are at the core of the brand, he explains: “My hunch has always been that if you bang on about reasons to ditch meat in terms of sustainability or animal ethics, it will repel consumers because they feel under siege and like you’re trying to lecture them.
“Our brand doesn’t really shout about sustainability. We shout about how tasty the food is.”
What went wrong in meat-free?
This year, plant-based categories have been struggling to maintain growth as cost pressures rise, with 73% of vegan shoppers actively trying to make savings on their grocery bills.
According to data from NIQ, meat alternatives still cost significantly more than standard food ranges.
As a result, Meatless Farm had to be rescued from financial collapse by fellow plant-based brand VFC in June, while LoveSeitan stopped trading in August after almost six years.
Shovel says the category has seen a decline due to “an oversimplification of brands in the space between 2019 and 2020”.
“Everyone was piling in from big companies to small companies and in the gold rush and the excitement, I think that quality was left behind.
“You probably had around 50% plus of products that were rank, so that’s why the figures were quite buoyant.”
Shovel says that counter intuitively, the challenges in plant-based have benefitted This.
“The big supermarkets are looking to consolidate and we’re in the process of that happening.” He explains that This is “fortunately one of the brands that the supermarkets want to back.”
This made it into Tesco, Sainsbury’s, Asda and Morrisons within the first eight months of its launch.
Shovel says that by having commercial success and creating real partnerships with the grocers, the brand was able to transform into what it is today.
Although Meatless Farm’s products have since returned to stores, Shovel tells Grocery Gazette that when the brand’s products were widely de-listed in June, This saw the base rate of sale for its mince go up around 25%.
“This year we’re up 55% year on year sales, so on the whole [supermarket listings] has been a big opportunity for us,” he adds.
Reaching new consumers
Looking ahead, Shovel says that This is keeping a solid focus on quality, research and development while also expanding into new territories such as by raising awareness on TV. The ITV investment will help further this aim.
Shovel says: “ITV is a media powerhouse. To have them as an investor, especially as their first food business investment, is super exciting.
“Not only did we get to make the porkiest plant-based TV ad ever, the scale of the investment means that we can reach audiences across the country and get closer to making meat-free the norm.”
“The ITV AdVentures team are ambitious, and their expertise as the largest commercial broadcaster will play an important role in supporting our growth, driving awareness of This and taking the plant-based meat category to new heights.”
In terms of product development, Christmas is just around the corner, and Shovel tells Grocery Gazette that This is “keen to nail seasonal occasions,” adding that if you’re plant-based, “the roast occasion is a little bit depressing so we’re trying to tackle that”.
Last month, the brand launched its plant-based chicken crown, ‘Isn’t Roast Chicken & Stuffing’, which it has spent the last 12 months working on.
Shovel also reveals that This has further product development in the pipeline, including “a really healthy, virtually unprocessed clean label” product which is yet to be unveiled.
As it continues to reach new consumers and solidify its position in the UK’s biggest supermarkets, This is building a brand that has the portfolio, popularity and backing to not only survive but thrive in a financially challenged sector.
