Member Article

Relishing a fifth year and a major culinary leap

When Relish Publications launched in the middle of the recent recession, the prospects for success looked slim for business couple Duncan and Teresa Peters. They had given up successful careers in the media to launch a niche publishing business, focussing on their passion for fine dining and exclusive high quality food.

The first book entitled Relish Yorkshire, played to all their strengths, and with a regional network of restaurants and connections in the industry already, the couple from Northumberland published their first book with the great hope of moving beyond one region and using the same concept of a regional fine dining guide and recipe book, they could establish a national franchise. As the business enters its fifth year, we find out what has happened with this North East based specialist publishing company.

As we enter 2014, Relish Publications has achieved much more than anyone would have ever predicted, and with a portfolio of 15 regional books under their belt, and 4 more planned for 2014, this is going to be the busiest year ever for the flourishing publishing business. From a simple format and selected distribution channels, Relish has grown to a national presence with over 1,500 of the best chefs in the business now featured, or part of the ever expanding Relish family, and a presence in leading High Street bookshops.

Commenting on the early days of Relish Publications, Duncan Peters said: “We started with a huge amount of enthusiasm and a knowledge that in the North of England, there was a gap in the market for a great fine dining guide and recipe. However, we had to be honest, and with our network of contacts at that time, we really were not that sure if the book had legs to move into other regions, and so it was very much a case of use the first book as an example to other regions what could be done. We chose Yorkshire as the test bed for the concept and the initial response was extremely promising. Despite the recession, fine dining establishments were braving the elements, and we had a product which offered them a great promotional tool, and a commercially viable product they could sell themselves.”

“That is why we started with a really clear focus that everything, from the restaurants selected, to the photography and the print production had to be top quality. We had to make our first product shine brightly and represent a major push forward in the market for fine dining guides. Our only chance of moving outside the North of England was to have a great end product, and the first book was exactly that. It was a showcase of talented chefs, presented as a contemporary cookery book. It was also a showcase of what we represented. We won great praise from those in the culinary sector and that helped with our reputation enormously. It was a calculated gamble, but one that has paid off.”

Nowadays Relish is the accepted brand within all fine dining establishments across England, Wales and Scotland, recognised as a mark of success. Appearing in a Relish Publication is an outstanding showcase for many restaurants. The most recent books covered regions like Devon and Cornwall all the way up to the Highlands of Scotland. The secret of the success of Relish Publications has been an unflinching approach to quality and making sure every book reflects the great restaurants featured.

Teresa Peters explained: “We wanted Relish to be much more than just a listings guide, and so we work with the very best food photographers, and each restaurant gets around 10 pages of editorial and recipe space in a book, so they can showcase their signature dishes, but also give you more depth about the restaurant. We strived to fill the gap which many restaurant guides just don’t reach, by providing an interesting contemporary cookery book, alongside a restaurant guide.”

“In 2014, we will have books for Wales and the North West, and then in the second half of this year we will also move the brand into London, which is a major milestone for the book series and our business.”

The business has also caught the eye of many of the best known chefs in the UK, and from the original book, the process of selecting a chef from each region who is a standard bearer of culinary excellence for the region has been a staple of a new book. Duncan explained: “We have been really fortunate that our books are so well read and have credibility with the chefs featured. That has enabled us to enlist the assistance of some of the biggest names in the culinary world to write the forewords for each of our books. With names like James Martin, Michael Caines, Tom Kitchin and Si King having written for our books, we have the added value of being endorsed by household names and the faces we see on our television screens almost every week.”

The business model has remained consistent, with one region at a time, an exhaustive selection process, and then countless hours working with the restaurants and the best designers and photographers to produce a beautiful individual book. Each restaurant sells the books, and with Waterstones and prestigious stores like Harvey Nichols also stocking the book range, Relish Publications has moved out of the small regional publishing network and into a national brand.

However, it has not always been plain sailing. As Duncan explained: “Our early editions worked well because we had a shopping list of restaurants we wanted to feature, and when they got the concept, their inclusion became an obvious and positive opportunity. The recession had caused major problems in the economy, but it took until mid 2012, for the major restaurants to really feel the effect. The knock on effect hit us late in 2012, and so whilst the desire to feature in a book remained high, the speed at which decisions and agreements were made with individual restaurants really slowed up. Everyone was more cautious and so restaurants that had originally been confident in their ability to invest and commercialise a new product, suddenly became more conservative. Everyone was lacking confidence in the general business community and this translated into a much slower process for us getting a book from concept and fully published and onto the bookcase.”

2013 represented the turning point and with the launch of Relish Scotland Second Helping, the major hurdles were overcome. Relish worked harder than ever to add value to the books, and for the participating restaurants. This led to the introduction of incentives, and the additional element of online publishing.

The success of the business can be highlighted by a departure into individual chef publishing, when last year they were selected to publish the latest book by acclaimed chef and TV personality Jean Christophe Novelli. Novelli decided he wanted to work with Relish because he saw the same passion for publishing and quality in the books, as he has for cuisine. The launch of Simply Novelli in November 2013 marked another new chapter for Relish Publications, who have grown to such an extent that they can now handle major celebrities and book launches on an international scale.

Teresa Peters continued: “We are still a family business and a close knit team of designers, editors and photographers develop each book from scratch. However, we have the ability to handle any author and with cookery books dominating sales in the publishing world, Relish could not be better placed to make a big impact. Starting with one book and in a niche sector has been no barrier to our business, and now we recognise that online sales and e-publishing of our work takes us to a global audience.”

Duncan Peters commented on the future for Relish: “Like any business, we need to make sure we stick to what we are good at, and so we always keep our feet on the ground. The opportunity to move into London and publish on behalf of some of the biggest brand names in the world has come because we got our product right, and decided to maintain the approach as the business grew. We maintain the same enthusiasm and optimism we had on day one.”

“Now we have a really strong stable of publications which means we can knock on anyone’s door and receive a warm welcome. Our brand has become well respected in the culinary industry, and this is why we now can move forward confidently and build a much bolder business development programme.”

Relish Publications waited until it had a national presence and an outstanding reputation before attempting to work in the worlds culinary capital London. The 5 year plan is being accomplished thanks to a steady solid team and a recognition that building a brand takes time, patience and a lot of hard work.

The future will mean a greater level of individuals publishing alongside the award winning guide books, and with Relish Rewards offering a completely free loyalty scheme unique in the fine dining guide market, and online editions of the book, the global market and promotional opportunities for Relish look better than ever.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Duncan Peters .