News

From humble beginnings in a Yorkshire farmhouse, Debbie & Andrew's sausages will soon be sizzling in frying pans up and down the country, thanks to a timely redesign and the power of packaging.

Debbie and Andrew Keeble didn't think their packaging was that important when they started Manor Born sausages from the kitchen table of their North Yorkshire farm. The brand initially sold well and was stocked in Tesco stores across Yorkshire. But when it tried to expand, sales dwindled.

"The packaging wasn't eye-catching enough," says Debbie, co-creator of the brand with her husband Andrew. It was Debbie who went to a design conference in nearby Leeds to hear Jonathan Sands, of Elmwood design agency, speak.

After a briefing from the Keebles on the history of the brand and the all-important tasting of the sausages, Sands came back and said he could help them – for the sum of £25,000. "As a small business you just don't have that sort of money," says Debbie, "You can go to the bank manager and ask for a loan for a sausage machine as that's tangible, but not design."

Back to reality
Then disaster struck. In 2001, foot and mouth devastated UK farms. All the agricultural shows where the couple had planned to sell the range were cancelled and the farming world was sent into a pit of despair. Yet out of this gloom the Yorkshire Forward recovery fund was created. The Keebles were awarded a maximum £15,000 grant to redesign their packaging, which the couple duly took back to Sands, who agreed to do the work at a cut-price rate.

The original design had been created by Debbie using clip art. Sands' advice to the couple was that they should capitalise on the fact they are 'real people' who make the sausages themselves. "You're real people, but you've got a cartoonised farm on the packs," he told them.

The couple went along with Sands' recommendations and sales jumped. "It was a huge turning point for us," says Debbie of the initial redesign, which replaced the Manor Born brand with the brightly coloured Debbie & Andrew's name against the black pack. "Friends laughed at us for paying someone to name our sausages after ourselves, but it has worked," says Debbie. The redesign transformed the local company into a national brand.

The Keebles initially hoped to make the tray that holds the sausages out of polylactic acid (PLA). "To me it really fits into the brand as we can use the composted waste on the land as fertiliser," explains Debbie. A lack of composting infrastructure has thwarted their plans. Instead, the trays are made from recycled PET, which can also be recycled after use.

Anaerobic digestion is something the Keebles have been keen on for a number of years and Debbie approached the council to enquire about setting this up on the farm to dispose of the local community's food waste. The council was delighted and asked when she would be available to go round and collect the waste from homes – not quite what Debbie and Andrew had in mind. In the end, logistics and the rules and regulations surrounding waste disposal put an end to the idea. "To set one up on the farm would be a huge task," she concedes.

Under Sands' tutelage, the Keebles have learnt the importance of regularly updating their packaging, and the pair are now on their third 'tweak'. With the latest redesign, launched in June, the couple challenged Elmwood to make it clearer who Debbie and Andrew were as people – without resorting to putting the couple's faces on the front of the pack. "They came up with the idea of putting our wellies on, which has worked really well," says Debbie with a smile. Market research has shown that the concept has been understood.

The Union Jack has also been included on the pack under the most recent tweak, as visitors to the couple's stand at shows were confused about the origins of the pork, says Debbie, despite being assured it is British. "We could have used a British quality meat mark, we could have used a red tractor, we could have used a lot of things, but at this moment in time I think the flag is the clearest," she says.

Earthy feel
"Another thing about the sleeve is that it's printed on the reverse side of the board," says Debbie. This side of the FSC board is matt and textured, which Debbie believes gives it more of an earthy feel. "It's modern, but also we haven't lost our rural roots," she says.

Prior to the latest redesign, supermarket roll-backs had pushed the price of the sausages down from £1.99 to £1.68. Buyers had agreed to increase the prices, but told the couple they would have to explain the cost to the consumer. The brand relaunched in new packaging at £2.29, sales went up and the range is about to be stocked nationally in Tesco, proving, as Debbie says, "that it's not always about price".

Debbie and Andrew Keeble didn't think their packaging was that important when they started Manor Born sausages from the kitchen table of their North Yorkshire farm. The brand initially sold well and was stocked in Tesco stores across Yorkshire. But when it tried to expand, sales dwindled.

"The packaging wasn't eye-catching enough," says Debbie, co-creator of the brand with her husband Andrew. It was Debbie who went to a design conference in nearby Leeds to hear Jonathan Sands, of Elmwood design agency, speak.

After a briefing from the Keebles on the history of the brand and the all-important tasting of the sausages, Sands came back and said he could help them – for the sum of £25,000. "As a small business you just don't have that sort of money," says Debbie, "You can go to the bank manager and ask for a loan for a sausage machine as that's tangible, but not design."

Back to reality
Then disaster struck. In 2001, foot and mouth devastated UK farms. All the agricultural shows where the couple had planned to sell the range were cancelled and the farming world was sent into a pit of despair. Yet out of this gloom the Yorkshire Forward recovery fund was created. The Keebles were awarded a maximum £15,000 grant to redesign their packaging, which the couple duly took back to Sands, who agreed to do the work at a cut-price rate.

The original design had been created by Debbie using clip art. Sands' advice to the couple was that they should capitalise on the fact they are 'real people' who make the sausages themselves. "You're real people, but you've got a cartoonised farm on the packs," he told them.

The couple went along with Sands' recommendations and sales jumped. "It was a huge turning point for us," says Debbie of the initial redesign, which replaced the Manor Born brand with the brightly coloured Debbie & Andrew's name against the black pack. "Friends laughed at us for paying someone to name our sausages after ourselves, but it has worked," says Debbie. The redesign transformed the local company into a national brand.

The Keebles initially hoped to make the tray that holds the sausages out of polylactic acid (PLA). "To me it really fits into the brand as we can use the composted waste on the land as fertiliser," explains Debbie. A lack of composting infrastructure has thwarted their plans. Instead, the trays are made from recycled PET, which can also be recycled after use.

Anaerobic digestion is something the Keebles have been keen on for a number of years and Debbie approached the council to enquire about setting this up on the farm to dispose of the local community's food waste. The council was delighted and asked when she would be available to go round and collect the waste from homes – not quite what Debbie and Andrew had in mind. In the end, logistics and the rules and regulations surrounding waste disposal put an end to the idea. "To set one up on the farm would be a huge task," she concedes.

Under Sands' tutelage, the Keebles have learnt the importance of regularly updating their packaging, and the pair are now on their third 'tweak'. With the latest redesign, launched in June, the couple challenged Elmwood to make it clearer who Debbie and Andrew were as people – without resorting to putting the couple's faces on the front of the pack. "They came up with the idea of putting our wellies on, which has worked really well," says Debbie with a smile. Market research has shown that the concept has been understood.

The Union Jack has also been included on the pack under the most recent tweak, as visitors to the couple's stand at shows were confused about the origins of the pork, says Debbie, despite being assured it is British. "We could have used a British quality meat mark, we could have used a red tractor, we could have used a lot of things, but at this moment in time I think the flag is the clearest," she says.

Earthy feel
"Another thing about the sleeve is that it's printed on the reverse side of the board," says Debbie. This side of the FSC board is matt and textured, which Debbie believes gives it more of an earthy feel. "It's modern, but also we haven't lost our rural roots," she says.

Prior to the latest redesign, supermarket roll-backs had pushed the price of the sausages down from £1.99 to £1.68. Buyers had agreed to increase the prices, but told the couple they would have to explain the cost to the consumer. The brand relaunched in new packaging at £2.29, sales went up and the range is about to be stocked nationally in Tesco, proving, as Debbie says, "that it's not always about price".