A Hale Barns businessman and his team have reinvented snacks and crisps, writes Carl Nagaitis
ENTREPRENEUR Tony Goodman’s unique commercial talents have been called upon by a variety of businesses from information technology specialists to accounting experts during a successful career spanning more than thirty years.
But his current role as Chief Executive Officer of Yumsh Snacks Ltd and hand cooked crisps and hand-picked popcorn experts Ten Acre Ltd has put him centre-stage on a mission to reinvent the humble snack in a bid to make the world a tastier and healthier place.
‘This all started after we checked out the quality and availability of gluten-free, dairy-free and MSG free products in the market place,’ explained 59-year-old Tony speaking from his Hale Barns home. ‘The results were disappointing to say the least. For instance, we tried some gluten-free crisps and they weren’t very enticing at all.
‘In fact in some cases, the products we tested seemed totally taste free. So we told ourselves, we must be able to do better than this and after completing our detailed research across the industry we were convinced there was a gap in the market that we could fill.’
Tony called in his old friends and business experts, Cheshire-based Jimmy Attias and Ronen Derber, to help him put together a business plan as well as organising the production of two new product ranges under the Yumsh Snacks and Ten Acre logos – and officially launched his new enterprise in 2014.
Tony was born in Didsbury, has been married to his wife Martine for ten years and has five grown-up children aged between 26 and 32. He moved to Cheshire in 1976 and gained an MBA in Business Administration at Liverpool’s John Moores University.
Since the start of the business, Ten Acre’s hand cooked crisps and hand-picked popcorn have won a variety of awards, including some from the prestigious ‘Great Taste Awards’ competition. And the brands have been enjoying growing demand from overseas markets, so much so that Yumsh Snacks and Ten Acre products are now available in 17 countries including the USA. Here in the UK they can be found in fine food shops, delis, farm shops, cafes, bars and other selected outlets, including Selfridges.
The company is aptly named: Yumsh goes with Yummy Yumsh – something that is tasty and in the Urban Dictionary Yumsh means cool or attractive.
The brand’s comprehensive ‘free from’ credentials are expected to have a significant effect on future sales performance, especially in view of the doubling of the size of the UK ‘free from’ market between 2009-14. Ten Acre’s range of quirky, tasty snacks are gluten-free, dairy-free and MSG free – and vegan and vegetarian.
The ten flavours of the hand cooked crisps range include ‘The secret of Mr Salt’, ‘When the Chilli got Sweet’ and ‘When Hickory got BBQ’D’, with ‘Pastrami in the Rye’ and ‘When the Pepper Crack’d’ being introduced to the growing range.
There are currently five flavours of the hand-picked popcorn to choose from including ‘Cousin Maisie’s Fennel and Lemon’, ‘Ambrose Popperley’s Wasabi ‘ and ‘Captain Theodore’s Lime and Sea Salt’; little explosions of flavour that are incredibly moreish! Waiting in the wings to be introduced to the range soon are the inspired ‘Lucia Popperley’s Cappucino’ and ‘Cousin Penelope’s Strawberry & Cream’ popcorn.
‘The figures also suggest a healthy and growing demand for our services,’ added Tony. ‘We look forward to delivering a valuable service that our customers will appreciate. That’s why there is no risk of contamination here. Nothing that does not have the right dietary credentials is permitted in our factory.’
In addition to falling in love with the products, many Ten Acre customers appreciate the company’s unusual and slightly eccentric approach to the marketing of its products via the whimsical world of the Ten Acre Village, a web-based location at www.tenacrecrisps.co.uk
It’s full of interesting characters, each with fascinating stories to tell and the website gives visitors another entertaining reason to click onto the Ten Acre story.
‘Although the Ten Acre brand is built on fun, character and a pinch of eccentricity, our quality and production are taken very seriously,’ explained Tony.
His New Year resolution is to promote Cheshire around the world and having spent time with him and witnessed his infectious enthusiasm I am confident that this is one resolution that isn’t going to be broken!
Follow the latest from Ten Acre Village at
