Debbie and Andrew Keeble have always made super premium sausages, but they used to hide behind their company name, Manor Born. No one even knew they existed and customers had no way of identifying with them and their passion for good food and good farming. Then everything changed.
Debbie and Andrew Keeble are the co-founders of Manor Born. They are also a married couple, with a family of four children, and they live and work on the farm that produces the premium sausages that they sell in countless stores and on dozens of road shows.
‘We do everything,’ explains Andrew. ‘So although I was initially sceptical about putting our names on the packaging, it actually makes all the sense in the world.’
In 2001, the Manor Born name was replaced by Debbie & Andrew’s, part of a complete brand overhaul that saw the people behind the sausages suddenly becoming the people on the front of the sausages. The use of personality to create and enhance brand value has, in this case, transformed the company’s name, identity, reputation and fortunes.
For the first time customers could identify with the company, understand and trust the provenance of the sausages and buy into the farm as a real family affair. Importantly, the use of personalities to sell sausages has given the company a direction for future brand enhancements, varieties and extensions, that all help to improve market share without losing the local touch.
Andrew Keeble was initially sceptical that just changing the sausages from Manor Born to Debbie & Andrew’s would have such a big impact on the company’s fortunes, but he can now see that bringing personalities to the fore is central to their ongoing success.
‘Using individual personalities has enabled us to share family favourite recipes with our customers by introducing new product lines such as Grandad Robinson’s Great Yorkshire Sausages, Nana’s Favourite Harrogate Sausages and Debbie’s Breakfast Sausages,’ he says. ‘This helps us to reach new customers and emphasise the family business at the same time.’
Andrew is now keen to reinforce the Debbie & Andrew’s partnership even further, and the latest packaging designs will see the couple’s photo moved to the front of the packaging. ‘At the moment, although it shows our names, the packaging doesn’t really say who we are,’ he says. ‘We’re a husband and wife team, we still farm, we’re experts in food production, and we need to bring that out in our packaging and other ways if possible.’
With customers quite rightly demanding greater provenance over food production, it is clear than re-enforcing the family farm and home-made nature of Debbie & Andrew’s sausages is going to remain central to the company’s branding strategy over the coming years.
Even though Manor Born has recently been bought by the UK’s largest sausage producer, J&J Tranfield (another illustration of the brand’s increasing value) Debbie and Andrew are still running the company just the same: ‘I’m still head of sales, Debbie is still head of product development,’ says Andrew. ‘Nothing’s changed – I’m even still driving the van.’
