Milner – who was responsible for driving international growth at Tyrells, among other senior positions in the F&B industry – was elected non-executive chairman of St Pierre Groupe board in 2018, subsequently driving the company’s turnover by 68%.
Today, the company boasts a retail value of almost a quarter of a billion dollars, boosted by branded propositions like Baker Street, America’s leading brioche brand, and par-baked category leader Paul Hollywood. The Manchester-headquartered bakery business provides products to the hospitality and retail markets around the world – available in more than 35,00 stores, as well as online to the UK, US and Europe.
St Pierre has been recognised by The Sunday Times International Track 200 for five consecutive years and was awarded the Queen’s Award for Enterprise in International Trade in 2019. Most recently, it won Exporter of the Year at The Grocer Gold Awards 2020, while earlier this year, it debuted at #42 in The Sunday Times BDO Profit Track 100.
Five year plan
Milner’s shift to CEO is part of a long-term strategy to accelerate international growth and bolster the company’s geographic footprint, particularly in nurturing relationships in the US. His plan is to double the value of the business within the next five years.
“David has been instrumental in our remarkable success in the past three years and appointing him as CEO was a natural next step to prepare us to meet ambitious growth plans,” said St Pierre Groupe’s founder Paul Baker.
Milner added, “St Pierre Groupe is a phenomenal business, doing bakery differently with its three brands,” said Milner.
“Since joining the business in 2018, I’ve worked with the team to achieve incredible growth. Yet there is still huge potential – it is innovative, superior quality and branded. The workforce has increased threefold in 18 months and I’m excited to guide the team to even greater success.”
He added a great brand starts with a quality product, of which the company has in abundance.
“Across the globe, consumers are shifting to more premium products – COVID simply accelerated the shift, encouraging us to innovate for and elevate everyday meals with our product ranges,” said Milner.
“As a business, we are renowned for working with retailers to deliver exceptional category growth – and we are constantly reviewing the market, consumer habits and our products to ensure this continues.”