Cavenham Foods
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Retail |
| Founded | 1965 |
| Defunct | Early 1980s |
| Fate | Liquidated |
| Headquarters | London, UK |
Key people | James Goldsmith, (chairman) |
Cavenham Foods was one of the United Kingdom's largest food processing businesses.
History
The company was founded by Sir James Goldsmith in 1965 when he bought up a series of bakeries.[1] In 1971 Cavenham acquired the Bovril Company but then sold most of its dairies and South American operations to finance further take overs.[2] These take-overs came quickly and included Allied Suppliers (a British supermarket business) for £86m in 1972, the Grand Union Company (an American supermarket business) for £62m in 1973, Colonial Stores (another American supermarket business) for £133m in 1978 and J. Weingarten Inc. (also an American supermarket business) in 1979.[2]
Goldsmith divested most of his investments in the early 1980s.[2] The main British part of the business, Allied Suppliers, went to Argyll Foods.[3]
References
- ^ "The Young Lions of Europe". Time. 25 September 1972.
- ^ a b c Arnold, Bruce (September 2004). "Goldsmith". Ketupa.net media note. Archived from the original on 5 January 2009.
- ^ "Obituary: James Gulliver". The Independent. 23 September 1996.