Company History

Leonards was formed in 1989 by a visionary butcher called Ray Leonard, who wanted high quality seasonings to use in his shop

After a few months local butchers heard about the quality of his products and asked Ray to make seasonings for them as well. One thing led to another and Ray became so busy he couldn't run both a butchers shop and a seasoning manufacturer, so began looking for someone to help him out.

At the same time Barry Lelliott, after many years in the Food Ingredient Industry was looking for a new challenge. He came across Ray, and saw a good business opportunity, He bought D. Leonard & Co ( the official name) off Ray, who went on to concentrate on other businesses.

Even though Leonards was a good business, it wasn't well known, so the challenge for Barry was to bring the Company to the whole of the Country. This he did over the following 15 years, taking it from a small manufacturer supplying the Portsmouth area, to a medium manufacturer supplying the whole of the UK.

In 1990 Barry moved Leonards from its original manufacturing site in Portsmouth, to a custom fitted factory in the beautiful East Sussex countryside, where we have been ever since. Since the move the factory has been extended, more than doubling its size, and conforms to the highest standards of quality and hygiene.

In 2006 Jonathan became a Partner, having worked for Leonards for the previous 10 years, meaning that Leonards will still be a family business for many years to come. Since Jonathan joined the business has continued to expand, building business both in the UK and now abroad. We export to Europe, Africa, Australasia and the Middle East, and are always keen to build up relationships within the Countries.

Leonards has invested money in a range of mixers for their products, which means we have the flexibility to produce blends from 20 kilos up to multiple tonnes lots, and in any pack size and weight required.

We have also invested in the New Product Development department, and have a team of enthusiastic and talented people able to service our Customers exacting requirements for new products and changing tastes,

Obviously as we have grown we have kept the Companies core values close to our heart. We still use the same high quality products, and every product is subject to stringent QC analysis to ensure it complies with current regulations and meets the requirements in terms of quality and functionality demanded by our discerning Customer base.