31 August 2013, 23:55 PM

Handmade to their mother’s recipe, Kevin and Paul Chapman make some of the best fishcakes in the UK. Using Lincolnshire potatoes and fish from Grimsby are what they think is the secret to their success, but it’s the large range of flavours and products with weekly deliveries that really entice the independent retailers that stock their cakes, wellingtons and fish pies. But how did the company start?

“Myself and my brother Paul have been involved in the fish and seafood trade since leaving school, both working for the family company started by our late father,” says Kevin. “In 2007 we decided it was time to change direction because the wholesale sector was becoming increasingly competitive and supplies and other factors were making it difficult. So we decided to start producing a range of handmade fishcakes inspired by our mums recipe after she passed away in the same year. Dad would bring fish from work and mum would make these superb fishcakes. They were a classic fish & parsley but with a secret ingredient that gave it a twist. We started trading on various farmers’ markets in Lincolnshire, and the feedback was very good, with sales increasing month on month.”

With sustainability, provenance and locality such hot topics in the food sector, Kevin knew it was important for the company to tap into these trends. “We only use Lincolnshire grown Maris Piper potatoes and fish is bought from local fish merchants,” he says. “Being based in Grimsby, there is an abundance of fresh fish available every day. We tried all kinds of different potato varieties before settling with the Maris Piper because of its superior flavour.

“With the success of the farmers markets we started to approach local farm shops to gauge interest for stocking our frozen fishcake range,” continues Kevin. “Again, this was successful, and before long the shops were asking if we made any other types of fish and seafood products. At this time we enlisted the help of a local development chef who put some ideas together for us. He came up with wellingtons, fish pie and haddock bakes.”

New Waters

The expanded range of products turned Chapman’s into a diverse fish brand, with modern flavours of fishcake sitting alongside the classic varieties on shop shelves. “Our most popular products are still the fishcakes, which now come in eight flavours (Classic Fish & Parsley, Haddock & Leek with Cheddar Cheese, Salmon with Lemon & Dill, Smoked Haddock & Bacon, Thai-style Salmon, Smoked Salmon & Horseradish, Cod Tartare and East Coast Crab Cakes), closely followed by the three flavours of fish wellingtons (Salmon, Cod and Smoked Haddock),” says Kevin.

There are plans for even more products, which will be released by the company soon. “We are just having packaging made for a range of Seafood Tartlets (Mediterranean Salmon, Smoked Haddock Florentine and Prawn, Salmon & White Wine) which will be available in late October, just in time for Christmas,” says Kevin. “We also have plans next year to introduce a new range of ready meals. In addition to the fishcakes and wellingtons, we have an extensive range of plain fish fillets, smoked haddock fillets, fish in breadcrumbs, luxury peeled prawns, wholetail scampi, king scallops and lemon sole goujons.”

The extensive list of fish products means more retailers are turning to Chapman’s to stock their entire range, giving consumers more choice and making it easier for the shop owner to order more stock from just one business.

Packaging is also very important to any successful food producer – it can mean the difference between jumping out on the shelf or getting lost amongst all the other products. Kevin supports his products’ nicely designed boxes with POS material, helping retailers increase sales themselves. “We have very attractive eye catching packaging and we offer A5, A4 and A3 posters, freezer stickers and Perspex leaflet holders and leaflets to display on the freezer or by the tills,” he says. “We promote products, and have a complete list of stockists searchable by town or postcode on our website. We attend trade shows like Farmshop and Deli and Speciality Food Show, organise tasting days in farm shops and can supply free samples for customers to do their own in-store tastings.”