Boutique caterer Vacherin joins CH&CO

Boutique operator Vacherin has become the latest company to join catering giant CH&Co.

Founded in 2002 by Mark Philpott and Clive Hetherington, Vacherin will bring a turnover of £30m, 600 staff and 45 sites to CH&Co. In 2006 the company was joined by Phil Roker, who was appointed managing director of the business 10 years later.

The three owners of Vacherin will continue to be involved in the business and retain a financial interest. Roker, who won the Foodservice Caterer Award at the 2019 Cateys, will remain as managing director, with clients working with the same team.

Vacherin is the latest business to join the CH&Co portfolio, which reported a 19% increase in turnover to £286m for 2018 with profit before tax of £17.2m. Last year saw Company of Cooks and Gather & Gather added to the stable, following on from the acquisition of Harbour & Jones and Concerto Group in 2018.

Philpott, chairman of Vacherin, said: “We’ve been impressed by the way other organisations have transitioned into the CH&Co family, which now has an established model of successfully bringing together businesses with similar cultures and strategies. This deal sets Vacherin up perfectly for further growth and as part of a larger organisation, our team will also have access to more and wider opportunities for development and career progression.”

Hetherington, Vacherin’s executive finance director, added: “Now as part of CH&Co, Vacherin benefits from the support of a larger business to help us address some of the challenges a growing company like ours faces, particularly in areas like technology and systems, and these will help enhance our administration processes.”

Roker, who last year told The Caterer that Vacherin was not for sale, said: “The past few years have seen Vacherin consistently grow and we were at the stage where we needed to either seek significant investment to take the company to the next level, or join forces with another successful company and grow with them. I’m delighted we’ve chosen to grow with CH&Co. Vacherin will continue providing catering and front of house experiences with a difference by delivering exceptional food, drink and wellbeing initiatives that make our clients' businesses stand out from the crowd.”

Bill Toner, chief executive of CH&Co, said: “I would like to extend a very warm welcome to Mark, Clive, Phil and the whole Vacherin team. Vacherin has achieved significant success and has been a strong operator in the London market for many years. While it is very much business as usual, this next stage for both Vacherin and CH&Co will be about giving the combined business the resources to perform even more effectively in this very competitive marketplace and sharing innovation and tactics to help us all become stronger and deliver exceptional food and service to our clients.”

From left to right: Bill Toner, Clive Hetherington, Mark Philpott, Phil Roker