Poppy’s Picnic’s nominated for three business awards

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Poppy’s Picnic’s meteoric rise in the fresh raw pet food market has been recognised and rewarded with wins and further nominations for prestigious regional and national business awards.

Since appearing on BBC Dragons’ Den, where founder Dylan Watkins and business partner Louise Mackintosh were offered four investment opportunities, the innovative company has already won ‘Business Start-up of the Year’, while also being nominated in the Outstanding Excellence Award category, at the 2018 Wiltshire Business Awards.

Poppy’s Picnic has now been nominated for three further prestigious awards, acknowledging the company’s growing prominence in the fresh raw pet food market.

Rural Business Awards

The Rural Business Awards, sponsored by Amazon, are the only UK-wide business awards specifically for the rural sector. Poppy’s Picnic has once again been nominated as Wiltshire ‘Business Start-Up of the Year’, chosen from many similarly positioned start-ups. The regional winners, to be announced on 18 October, will go forward to the national finals which take place in February 2019.

PetQuip

Priding themselves on introducing innovative new products to the market, Poppy’s Picnic is thrilled to have three products nominated for the ‘Pet Product of the Year’ at the PetQuip Awards.

To be announced at the national PATS Telford pet food trade show the three products - ENHANCED PET FOOD, COMPLETE MEATBALLS and PUPPY FOLLOW-ON PASTE - are also featured in the trade show’s prestigious ‘New Product Showcase’.

The Director General of PetQuip, Amanda Sizer Barrett said,

“PetQuip receives worldwide recognition and to gain one of its awards demonstrates that the winning firm is a high achiever in the pet industry. Using the awards as a form of promotion can add significant credibility to both a company and its products in both home and overseas markets. We are looking forward to finding out who will be the lucky winners this year.”

2018 Business Leader Awards

And finally, hot off the press, Poppy’s Picnic has been nominated once again as ‘Start-up Business of the Year’ at the 2018 Business Leader Awards.

Celebrating the achievements of companies and the people who run them across the South West, the awards received over 200 high calibre entries this year and competition to become a finalist was fierce. The winners will be announced on 27 September in Bristol.

Since turning down all the investment opportunities from the Dragons, including a £60,000 investment from Deborah Meaden, Poppy’s Picnic has successfully raised £600,000 through crowd funding and this will be used to fund ambitious plans for the business, including new recipes and a whole new range for cats.

Founder Dylan Watkins and business partner Louise Mackintosh believe that simplicity - or RAWPLICITY as they call it - is the key to their success.

“RAWPLICITY is behind everything that we do at Poppy’s Picnic. From producing recipes that include the best quality, recognisable ingredients, to creating innovative products that help dog owners with portion sizes, feeding our food is fun and easy” says Dylan Watkins.

“Our aim from the start has been to make it easier for more people to feed fresh. Any fresh food in a dog’s diet is better than none and we make innovative products to help people switch completely to feeding our raw meals, or just add a little boost to a kibble diet. It’s not about being exclusive and saying people have to feed a strict and set way, it’s about being inclusive and helping people make changes for good. Our marketing backgrounds means we have created a strong, stand out brand and our focus has always been on creating a community of Poppy’s Picnic fans who help us spread the word.”

Dylan concludes, “Our food is handmade by a fourth generation Wiltshire butcher and only includes the best human-grade British ingredients. We want every cat and dog in the UK, and beyond, to have access to the best quality fresh meals - the closest to what they would eat in the wild. It is our ultimate aim to make the raw food diet fun, easier and more convenient for pet owners to follow in order to encourage more people to start feeding their pets in this way”.

For further information on the product range or if you are interested in becoming a stockist, please contact Poppy’s Picnic. Tel: 01380 716 599 email: woof@poppyspicnic.co.uk or visit the website: www.poppyspicnic.co.uk