UK-based biscotti manufacturer The Artful Baker is shutting up shop.
An automated email response from founder, Paul Rostand, indicates the company is closing with immediate effect.
Rostand cited “inflationary pressures” as a key reason behind the closure, which “made it unviable for us to keep trading”.
He added that the impact of the Covid pandemic, “followed by unprecedented raw material, energy and labour” cost hikes had also made business tricky.
“We would like to thank all our customers and suppliers over the years that have supported us and its been a pleasure to work with you,” he said.
Ten employees worked for the company, according to the most recent records on Companies House.
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Its latest balance sheet indicated the business had seen its current assets drop by over 50% to £171,816 at the end of 2022.
Just Food was unable to reach The Artful Baker for further comment at the time of writing.
Rostand founded his biscotti venture in 2013 under the name New Forest Biscotti Company. The business became The Great British Biscotti Co. in 2016, which exported to the US, Norway, Italy, Germany, Canada, UAE and Kuwait.
The Artful Baker label was launched alongside Great British Biscotti in 2020. It is unclear if the latter brand has also ceased trading.
In 2021, the group received a “six-figure investment” from Batch Ventures, a joint venture between British baking giant Warburtons and FMCG brands accelerator Mission Ventures.
The Artful Baker baked a range of sweet and savoury biscotti, which included sour cherry and dark chocolate, triple Belgian chocolate, smoked jalapeño and lime, and fennel, pink peppercorn and sea salt.
Its goods were sold primarily in the UK through e-commerce sites, including Amazon, specialist online retailer Fennel and Ginger, wholesalers like Holleys Fine Foods and coffee roasters Redber Coffee.
It also sold white-label products to the premium chocolate retailer Hotel Chocolat.
