Finsbury Food Group has acquired Flower & White, a Telford-based maker of light sweet treats and lower-calorie snack bars, as the Cardiff-headquartered speciality bakery manufacturer continues to pursue its “buy and build” growth strategy. The value of the deal has not been disclosed.
Flower & White will continue to operate from its existing site in Telford, where it employs 46 staff. The business, which sells through direct-to-consumer, retail and foodservice channels, is currently growing at around 30 per cent. Its founders, husband and wife team Leanne and Brian Crowther, will remain in place to support a smooth integration.
John Duffy, chief executive of Finsbury Food Group, said: “Flower & White is a high-quality, entrepreneurial brand operating in attractive growth segments. This acquisition strengthens our direct-to-consumer platform and adds exciting capability in sweet treats and better-for-you snacking. We see strong opportunities to scale the brand through our retail and commercial channels.”
Leanne Crowther added: “This is a proud moment in our journey. What started as a small idea in our Shropshire kitchen has grown into a brand-first business shaped by an amazing team and loyal customers. Joining Finsbury allows us to build on everything we’ve created, accelerating our direct-to-consumer plans, strengthening retail and foodservice relationships and bringing even more of what people love from Flower & White to the market.”
Flower & White: From Shropshire Kitchen to National Brand
Flower & White was founded in 2009 by Leanne and Brian Crowther, who began selling cupcakes at farmers’ markets from their kitchen in Shropshire. The company, previously known as Merangz, now specialises in “light and indulgent snacks” with a focus on meringues and lower-calorie snack bars. Its product range includes Meringue Giants, Meringue Drops, and Meringue Bars and Bites.
The brand positions itself on a “better-for-you” platform: many of its products are gluten-free, under 100 calories per bar, vegetarian, and some are plant-based. The company uses natural ingredients, including free-range eggs and British sugar, and has introduced 100 per cent plastic-free, recyclable packaging for certain lines — which it claims was a first in confectionery. By 2020, its Telford factory employed 40 people and had the capacity to produce more than one million meringues a day. The founders have backgrounds in food and retail and were driven by a desire to build a business centred on quality and customer service.
Finsbury’s ‘Buy and Build’ Strategy in Focus
The acquisition of Flower & White is the latest in a series of targeted purchases that form the backbone of Finsbury Food Group’s growth model. The company, which manufactures a wide range of bread, cake, morning goods and bakery snack products for multiple retailers, foodservice operators and export markets across the UK and Europe, operates a clear “buy and build” strategy — acquiring innovative, high-growth businesses in the bakery sector and scaling them through its existing commercial infrastructure.
That strategy received a significant boost in 2023 when Finsbury was taken private by DBAY Advisors in a deal worth £143.4 million. The move from public to private ownership was intended to provide the capital and flexibility for transformational mergers and acquisitions.
Last August, Finsbury acquired a majority stake in Lola’s Cupcakes, a direct-to-consumer cupcake brand, marking its initial entry into the DTC market. In January 2023, it bought Lees Foods, a producer of branded confectionery and meringues, for £5.7 million, a deal that diversified its product capability into high-growth segments. Together, these acquisitions add differentiated propositions — from indulgent cupcakes to lighter, better-for-you snacks — to Finsbury’s existing brand stable, which includes Memory Lane Cakes, Fletchers and Kara Foodservice, as well as licensed lines for Disney, Thorntons and Mars.
Finsbury Food Group employs 800 people at its Cardiff headquarters and manufacturing site, which operates under the Memory Lane brand, and 3,500 across the UK. The group reported annual revenues of more than £500 million. For fiscal year 2024, revenue stood at £569,748,344 with an EBITDA of £44,101,464. John Duffy has served as chief executive since 2009.
The UK healthy snack market, into which Flower & White fits, is expanding rapidly. According to market data, it was valued at approximately USD 3.54 billion in 2025 and is projected to reach USD 5.89 billion by 2035, driven by rising health consciousness, demand for convenience, clean-label ingredients and e-commerce growth. Finsbury’s acquisition gives it a foothold in this segment, adding a differentiated lighter snacking proposition to its roster of baked goods and strengthening its direct-to-consumer channel alongside Lola’s.
Flower & White’s co-founders will oversee the integration from Telford. Finsbury Food Group supplies a range of bread, cake, morning goods and bakery snack products to multiple retailers, food service and export channels across the UK and Europe.
