Leeds Beckett University - City Campus,
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Research partnership secures bright future for Guiseley bakery with new products, branding and growth
The project is a Knowledge Transfer Partnership (KTP), part-funded by Innovate UK. In the first six months of the KTP, the team has created:
- New branding and labelling throughout the business
- Brand new Instagram and TikTok accounts, and a refreshed Facebook account
- A suite of video reels to build strong social media engagement
- ‘Too Good to Go’: surprise bags that support Haighs’ core sustainability principles and reduce food waste
- A new low-carb range – including bread, biscuits and desserts – have been developed, test marketed and are starting to be launched to new customers
- A unique Master Baker Experience, providing a new innovation service to ‘test bake’ new products for other companies
To drive change within Haighs Bakery and manage the running of the KTP, LBU recruited Leeds Beckett BA (Hons) Business Management with Marketing graduate, Katie Johnson, to the role of Strategic and Digital Marketing Lead.
Dr Catherine Ashworth, Academic Lead on the KTP, said: “In only six months the KTP has already brought significant value and impact to Haighs. Katie is doing a fantastic job as KTP Associate – the new Too Good to Go surprise bags are consistently selling out, and the new low-carb thins bread sold out within a week and has already achieved five-star customer reviews.”
The partnership team are now developing a new Vietnamese bakery line, with 120 LBU Masters’ students on Marketing, Digital and Management courses contributing to a strategic brand plan and market entry strategy for Haighs to launch a Vietnamese-style baguette through a consultancy pitch competition.
The students presented their plans to the Haighs and LBU KTP team, and the winning team, consisting of Bo Bo Han, Mathavee Panbunchoo, Thinn Lei Yee, A Mi Ko Ko and Binta Sawaneh Njie, will now see their ideas brought to life.
Thinn Lei Yee, a student on the MSc Marketing and Digital Strategy course, said: “Taking part in the Haighs consultancy project and pitch competition was such a valuable experience. We worked closely as a team to really understand the brand, explore growth opportunities, and develop a strategy that felt both creative and realistic. This live project gave me the chance to apply what I’ve learned in class to a real business, while also improving my strategic thinking and confidence when presenting ideas to a client. It made everything feel much more practical and relevant.
“The feedback from Haighs was very encouraging. They appreciated how practical our ideas were and how we stayed true to their brand while bringing in fresh thinking. It was really rewarding to know that our recommendations could actually be implemented in a real business setting.”
Katie Johnson, Strategic and Digital Marketing Lead at Haighs, added: “Thank you so much for running the live project. Haighs really got a lot out of it - and the students brought some great new insights and ideas to the business!”
Adam Haigh, Managing Director of Haighs, said: “The KTP is ‘wow’ - there’s nothing that hasn’t been looked at. It’s well done to Katie and the Leeds Beckett University team who are really helping us move forward. With the guidance provided we’re now analysing and selecting and making decisions based on evidence – we’re now looking at things more strategically.”
“We’re happy to change, we’re learning new things and getting our eyes opened. The LBU team are giving us the visibility and confidence to make new investments and approach new markets with new products that we wouldn’t have thought of before.”
Established in 1950, Haighs Bakery is a highly regarded bakery, with a loyal customer base. Haighs produce bread, fresh pastry goods and cakes, serving clients such as shops, schools, universities and takeaways. The KTP is a research-drive project designed to safeguard the traditional skills within Haighs while introducing new skills to accelerate innovation and growth, ensuring their sustainability in a competitive and fast-changing marketplace.
The Haighs Bakery KTP is led by Dr Catherine Ashworth, a Knowledge Transfer Expert and Senior Lecturer in Global and Strategic Marketing, with Ruth Gosnay, a Senior Lecturer specialising in FMCG and communications, and Dr Carl Clare, a Senior Lecturer specialising in management strategy and marketing – all within Leeds Business School.
Team photo l-r: Dr Christine Zhang – Strategic Brand Management Module Leader, Bo Bo Han, Mathavee Panbunchoo, Thinn Lei Yee, A Mi Ko Ko, Katie Johnson - Strategic and Digital Marketing Lead at Haighs Bakery, Dr Catherine J Ashworth, Dr Qing Shan Ding.
In this article
Dr Catherine Ashworth
With a practitioner background at an international level, a strategic marketing PhD and over 15-years of successful knowledge transfer partnership (KTP) business transformation experience as lead academic, Catherine has won innumerable Innovate UK bids and led countless organisations to sustained growth.
Ruth Gosnay
Ruth M Gosnay is a Senior Lecturer in Marketing at Leeds Business School who has been teaching on higher education programmes for over 18 years. Previously, Ruth worked for leading brands such as Morphy Richards and Spear and Jackson.
Dr Carl Clare
Dr Carl Clare is a Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy and an experienced Senior Lecturer in Business Strategy and Marketing. He has held a range of leadership roles in HE and hold publications in established academic journals.
