P&B Foods Ltd started life as a one-man band and evolved into one of the largest and fastest-growing Asian food suppliers in the UK and throughout Europe.
We’re proud of the entrepreneurial spirit and hard work that provided the foundations for our company.
In 1965, Mr Thakorbhai Vital Bhai Patel started selling rice and spices from a mobile van to Bradford’s burgeoning Indian and Pakistani community.
His brothers eventually joined him in the UK and helped him progress the business. Together they bought a 5000 sq ft warehouse on Baxandall Street, operating as Patel Brothers.
Business was good, but in Thakorbhai’s eyes, it was not progressing fast enough to keep pace with the opportunities that were presenting themselves.
In 1970, Mr Patel decided to take on a loan to allow for the purchase of extra stocks. He approached Mr Bhagat Singh Bhatoa, who was a customer, confidant, and friend.
As opposed to just loaning Mr Patel some money, Mr Bhatoa took on the position of silent partner by providing funding in exchange for a 50% split in ownership of the business. Overnight, Patel Brothers became Patel and Bhatoa (Foods) Limited, with the name later being shortened to P&B (Foods) Limited.
Initially, the new company flourished, but in 1973, an ill-timed commodity deal almost collapsed the business. A change was required, and Mr Mohinder Singh Bhatoa, the eldest son of Bhagat Singh Bhatoa, was brought in to form part of a new management structure.
Together, Thakorbhai and Mohinder Singh set about a path of measured growth, which eventually saw the business outgrow the humble Baxandall Street base.
In 1984, the company moved to a 16,000 sq ft premises on Planetrees Road and started operations as a new cash and carry style business. With hard work, persistence and a knack for getting a good deal, the business continued to grow.
This expansion was further accelerated by the arrival of Mr Chandra Kant Patel, Inderveer Bhatoa, Rajiv Patel, Jay Akre, Atul Jain and Mani Bhatoa.
Several extensions to the building were required to accommodate the continuing development. With a focused emphasis on product quality, development of own-label brands, continual diversification of the product portfolio and a growing and increasingly skilled sales force, the business outgrew the Planetrees Road site, which had now been extended to over five times its original size. It was time to move once more.
We moved to our current home in 2016 – a purpose-built 200,000 sq ft facility built on the former West Bowling Golf Club. Our new facility features state of the art milling, roasting, and packaging machinery.
This move also saw the company shift from operating as a cash and carry style business to a 100% distribution-based model through which we service the whole of the UK and Europe.
Today, we employ 150 people, have our own fleet of delivery vehicles and benefit from a bespoke warehouse and sales management system that allows us to deliver exceptional service to customers around the globe.
We plan to continue expanding our premises, our team, and our product portfolio so we can keep building on the foundations put in place by Mr Patel and Mr Bhatoa all those years ago.
To find out more about a specific range or to arrange a meeting to discuss stocking our products, get in touch.