Presented to a business or individual who the BSA Management Committee consider deserves recognition for the work they have done to advance the UK sandwich and food to go markets.
WINNER
-
Jamie Joyce
from Flexeserve
About Jamie
Jamie joined the business straight from school in 1995 – working his way through the ranks from sweeping the floors to Global CEO. He has taken Flexeserve from a single-site company to a world-wide operation.
Jamie’s vision for the food-to-go industry has revolutionised the way people eat around the world and changed how supermarkets, QSR’s, cafes and bakeries think about, and sell, hot food.
Before becoming Global CEO, Jamie knew that the company had something special in what was to become their flagship product – Flexeserve Zone. He understood that consumers, not just the retailers, wanted a better experience and the technology in Flexeserve Zone could unlock that. His vision was to create a comprehensive service around the technology, to achieve a clear competitive advantage within the market. This involved developing a strategy, a dedicated team, and the right facilities to put the Flexeserve brand at the forefront of the industry. Flexeserve Solution, became the world’s only hot-holding service that encompasses the six key elements of a successful food-to-go programme.
As a result of this strategy, Flexeserve has become the go-to solution for hot food-to-go, generating sustained domestic and international year-on-year sales growth. The success of this led to Jamie taking the position of CEO in 2018.
Every supermarket, small cafe or high street chain can now expand their range, to sell more and waste less. He and the team has enabled foodservice operators to bridge the gap - giving the consumer more choice for breakfast, lunchtime, snacks or even dinner.
Not content with standing still, Jamie decided to drive one of the company’s boldest moves it had ever made - opening a facility in the Americas. Jamie had been inspired by his late mentor and company Founder, Alan Nuttall, who had always dreamt of international expansion. Throughout the industry’s toughest time, the Covid-19 pandemic, Flexeserve worked incredibly hard to build a new strategy to support their rapid growth in North America. One of Jamie’s proudest achievements to date, Flexeserve Inc. opened its doors in Southlake, Texas in August 2023 and has become a huge success. The dedicated team, guided by Jamie, have adopted Flexeserve Solution, ensuring every customer gets the same industry-leading support.
Another of Jamie’s motivations has always been innovation. Having seen Alan Nuttall receive the Queen’s Award in 1996 for the company’s first heated display, Turboserve, Jamie wanted to achieve this for Flexeserve Zone. Following a lengthy and challenging application process, Flexeserve Zone was awarded with the Queen’s Award for Innovation, marking another proud moment for both Jamie and Flexeserve. Jamie still considers his trip to Buckingham Palace to collect the award as one of his proudest career and life moments.
In the ever-changing landscape of running a global business, Jamie is focusing on what Flexeserve does best, developing innovative products and services to advance food-to-go. As a forward-thinking leader, he is doing this with sustainability in mind. The latest investment into manufacturing facilities, as well as achieving ISO standards 9001, 14001 and 45001, ensure that Flexeserve can continue to design and manufacture the highest quality products in the most sustainable way. This can only start with a clear picture for the future, and thanks to Jamie’s passionate leadership, the next steps for Flexeserve look extremely positive.
Jamie’s Ethos:
Partner-focused approach
The journey that Jamie has taken through the company has also inspired him to establish a clear and inspiring vision, together with a set of meaningful values for Flexeserve and its Partners.
Through this initiative, every member of the team lives the company values and Jamie has created a unique culture where everyone can communicate, feel heard and be a part of something. A recently introduced set of employee benefits is just one example of the positive steps that this process is going to generate going forward. He has also introduced a new plan for bringing more apprenticeships into multiple departments of the business, as well as a new training programme - building future leaders of Flexeserve.
Accolades:
Global CEO of Flexeserve, Leicestershire Business of the Year, lunch! Show Innovation Challenge (Gold for Flexeserve Zone and Gold for Connect), Sammies Award (Business Development) and Queen’s Award for Innovation.
