Giraffe and Ed's Easy Diner partner with Tesco to launch retail range
The partnership comes after Tesco sold the Giraffe restaurant group to BRG in June 2016 with the intention of shifting its focus to its core offering, before merging with wholesaler Booker.
BRG acquired Ed’s in 2016, when it bought it out of administration in a reported cut-price deal of £8.75m, closing 26 of its 59 restaurants.
The new line of products will be the first time Giraffe and Ed’s have entered a retail partnership. Launching today, it sees a variety of dishes inspired by Ed’s Easy Diner and Giraffe’s offering, and will be stocked at 300 Tesco stores and available online.
Dishes inspired by Giraffe’s starter menu will include patatas bravas; harissa spiced lamb kofta; pulled beef empanada; and Korean chicken wings.
A selection of main courses available across the supermarket’s stores include Malaysian vegetable curry; Sri Lankan prawn curry; lamb tagine; chicken tinga; katsu chicken; and tamarind duck noodles.
The desserts that customers will be able to buy in-store will be inspired by Ed’s Easy Diner, and will include the likes of cookie dough and banoffee pie.
“As we continue to develop our Giraffe and Ed’s Easy Diner brands, it is great to be entering the retail arena with an experienced and market-leading partner like Tesco,” says Tom Crowley, CEO of BRG.
“In the case of Giraffe, we are launching some brilliant new dishes representing the brand’s strength in classic and emerging flavours from across the globe, whilst our dessert choices from Ed’s Easy Diner are true American classics. This is great news for Giraffe and Ed’s loyal customer base, who will now be able to access our brands through a new channel.”
Giraffe reported improvement in its losses following its acquisition by BRG, posting losses of £5.2 in the year to January 2017, compared to an £8m loss for the 52 weeks to February 2016.
