Smoke innovator Besmoke partners with Azelis on product distribution
Besmoke team members at the firm’s base in Arundel, West Sussex.
A UK specialist in smoke flavour has agreed a distribution partnership with a major global player in the speciality food ingredients industry.
Under its deal with Antwerp-headquartered multinational Azelis Group, West Sussex-based Besmoke aims to strengthen its market reach in Europe.
The move follows Azelis’ acquisition last year of Smoky Light, a Besmoke distributor in the Benelux countries.
Ahrend Buckers, business manager for smoke and grill flavours at Azelis and previously Smoky Light’s managing director, said the aim is to “work together with Besmoke to bring the benefits of innovation in smoke ingredients and natural smoke flavours to our customers”.
He added: “It’s a great partnership built on trust, respect, technical and industry knowledge, and a shared approach to growing the market.”
Peter Dingelhoff, Besmoke technical sales director, said the move was part of a deliberate strategy to strengthen market reach globally through distribution partners.
“This tie-up is of huge benefit to us,” explained Dingelhoff,. “With Smoky Light now part of Azelis, we can count on a partner with strengths in different regions. They know the culture, the local markets and they start with deep knowledge of Besmoke products. I see us as one team, working collaboratively. It’s a prime example of how to grow business mutually through high-level collaboration and a shared desire for a strong market position.”
He added: “We are strengthening our reach by intensifying our way of working with distributors across the world. We share company developments and what we’re doing with purchasing, R&D and product innovation. We plan to do more training with our distributors in a new innovation centre we’re launching at our Arundel head office and production facility in 2025.”
Colin Hitch, Besmoke’s chief commercial officer, said: “Our Azelis partnership represents a big collaboration in our global distribution network. Azelis are just like an extension of our sales team, promoting our entire product range and acting on behalf of Besmoke, but with the addition of their expertise in innovation and a strong portfolio.”
Evy Hellinckx, Azelis CEO for the EMEA region, said: “Our new partnership with Besmoke not only represents a great contribution to our range of flavour ingredients, it also builds on our growth strategy and reinforces our position as a leading innovation service provider in the speciality food ingredient sector.”
Related content
