And that’s not all. Geoff also creates a popular range of luxury hampers using only the best local food and drink products under the Lakeland Artisan brand.
After choosing to step away from a career in hotel management and catering, Geoff founded Lakeland Artisan in 2006 with his then business partner.
The duo originally had intentions of creating a delicious yet slightly healthier version of fudge, using a fruit sugar with a low GI. However, they soon switched their focus, utilising Geoff’s interest in chutney and jam production.
The driving force behind Lakeland Artisan soon became apparent: making high-quality products from the finest natural ingredients, with no artificial flavours, colours or preservatives.
“We wanted to focus on creating delicious products without the use of cheap filler ingredients. Not only do natural ingredients provide more nutritional value, they’re also more sustainable and there’s been an increased demand for ‘clean label’ products over the years.
“For the hamper side of the business, we also use local companies wherever possible.”
At one point, Lakeland Artisan had six shops and employed almost thirty people, with the company’s ongoing expansion resulting in a move to new premises in 2020.
However, the Covid pandemic took its toll and Geoff made the difficult decision to streamline the business by closing the shops and reducing the size of his team to focus on online sales instead.
“We went back to our roots which made the business much more manageable,” says Geoff. “It also led to new opportunities which we could never have expected.
“When we swapped from doing bottled carbonated soft drinks to canned soft drinks, it opened up the market for us to do canning for other companies. So, we can produce (or manufacture?) spirits and mixers for a number of other people now.
“We’ve also got the equipment to make jams and marmalades, so we’ve dipped our toes in the water regarding making them in bigger volumes for ice cream manufacturers to use in their products.”
Client testimonial: Geoff Monkman, Lakeland Artisan
“In previous years, the cost of my insurance had been overwhelming. H&H Insurance Brokers said they could help and came back with a much better quote that included everything I needed for the business. It was a smooth, straightforward transaction with no problems. Five stars all round.”