Profile - Simon Gray: Energetic approach brings likely boost to bottled drink company

CAST your mind back to the late 1990s, when energy drinks were strictly for the fanatical and muscle-bound.

A young Leeds Metropolitan University graduate called Simon Gray decided that it was only a matter of time before the market became mainstream. With the end of the nine-to-five culture, Mr Gray believed that more people would seek healthy stimulation in a bottle.

A decade ago, when the world was preoccupied with the bursting of the dotcom bubble, he founded Boost Drinks, with the aim of providing a large, “resealable” range of energy drinks at a price that didn’t take your breath away. Today, the company is turning over £16.1m a year, and providing an extra kick of energy for troops in Afghanistan and consumers around the world who can’t afford to let their attention wander. It’s got a UK-wide distribution network of wholesalers. Boost’s products can be found in a host of convenience stores and off-licenses, which has helped sales to rise 44 per cent year-on-year. The company is expanding so rapidly that Mr Gray hasn’t discounted the possibility of a flotation.

He told me: “There are a lot of opportunities for the business ahead. That (flotation) is arguably one among others that we will digest. I wouldn’t rule anything out.”

Back in August 2001, Mr Gray was a food and drink wholesaler who wanted to become his own boss. He’d picked up an impressive contacts list, which made it easy for him to negotiate with a supplier who is now Boost’s bottling partner.

Mr Gray said: “For me it was a matter of seeing an opportunity you would hope other people would buy into. We saw what was in the market place and wondered if we could start to trademark our brand.”

Initially, his plans were modest.

“We’ve been built on solid foundations,’’ he said. “I had a small firm’s loan from the bank and within a year that was paid off. We’ve been pretty much debt-free since then.

“We weren’t looking to take over the world overnight. Each year, we were looking to do the basics, and re-invest money from previous years. There becomes a point after three or four years where you’re not just a small business. A lot of people would say I’m a fairly safe sailor. It was funding my lifestyle and I wasn’t willing to gamble that. But you do want to keep growing and challenge yourself. We’re not a manufacturer, so, from a cost base perspective, we keep things very tight”.

He heads a small internal team, and apart from its early “flagship” brand, the company has also created the Boost Sport and Boost Active products.

Despite headlines about the shocking rise in obesity levels, there are still a core of consumers who want to have the energy to embrace a healthier lifestyle.

“We do a high caffeine range which is more about mental alertness,’’ he said. “If you look at the last five to 10 years, everything is faster – people are working through the night – so there’s a need for mental stimulation.

“The student market is very big,’’ he added. “Recently we’ve been targeting the workplace and motorists; people who need that extra mental boost. We’re not saying this is a replacement for sleep. We’re involved with driving associations who understand the need for rest, but also the role these drinks can play within a healthy lifestyle.”

The company’s growth in recent years has been organic, and built around strong relationships with independent retailers.

Intriguingly, he describes the supermarket sector as “an interesting possible opportunity”.

“Supermarkets could be a very significant part of the business,’’ he said. “Supermarkets are evolving at the moment. Some have moved into the forecourts and the convenience chains, which is where we are.

“There’s also the world of export. We’ve launched in 12 countries in the last 18 months, so there are big opportunities there. There’s also range extension and new products in the portfolio.

“Everywhere you go in the globe, energy drinks in some shape and form are being recognised. Usually, there are one or two premium brands that occur globally.”

Vast sums are being spent globally on promoting the major energy drink brands, and Mr Gray is more than happy to “fly on their coat tails”.

“We’ve historically done a lot of business in Spain and the Balearics, with more of the expat communities,’’ he said. “We launched in Sweden a couple of years ago and other parts of Europe. Further afield we’ve launched in South Africa in the last six months, where repeat business is coming through. We’ve launched in west Africa, Nigeria and Ghana. We’ve also just launched in Bangladesh and Afghanistan. A lot of the Army are based out there, so they want to see British products. We’re just about to launch in Brazil.”

But what about job creation closer to home? Could there potentially be a manufacturing base in Yorkshire?

“It’s quite possible,’’ he said. “The suppliers we have are based around the UK. Two of them are based in the North, so there’s no reason why not.”

The success of BBC TV’s The Apprentice has encouraged a new generation of teenagers to consider becoming tycoons.

Mr Gray is a pragmatist who didn’t work from a childhood master plan.

“I don’t think you know that you want to be an entrepreneur,’’ he said. “It’s not a job. It’s part of your DNA. When I was at school I was interested in business, but I didn’t know whether I wanted to run my business or be a major part in somebody else’s.

“It’s about confidence and your ability to network and communicate. You have to generate the opportunities for yourself.”

Boost, with its low cost base, aversion to debt and desire to boost exports, is better placed than most to keep growing in the uncertain times ahead. Mr Gray said: “The recession came at a time when the IT infrastructure globally had undergone a massive change. Even without the recession, a lot of businesses would have been finding it very difficult. As we come out of it, there will be a lot of businesses who struggled but will be in better shape than before. There will be others that re-invented themselves.”

He’s calm and personable, but still aware of pitfalls.

Mr Gray recently told a conference that value brands can’t build a long-lasting business while competing on “rock-bottom” prices. He said brands must concentrate on “out-thinking” rather than out-spending to win market share.

He’s preparing for a sophisticated post-recession market. Shoppers will have the chance to buy higher value goods, or ruthlessly hunt down cheaper, commoditised items.

Inspiration, it seems, can come from hitting the bottle.

Simon Gray Factfile

Name: Simon Gray.

Title: Managing director of Leeds-based Boost Drinks, the energy drinks firm which is celebrating its 10th anniversary this month.

Date of birth: May 30, 1973.

Place of Birth: Leeds.

Education: A BA Hons European Marketing degree at Leeds Metropolitan University.

First Job: Food buyer.

Car driven: Range Rover.

Favourite film: The Usual Suspects, which starred Kevin Spacey.

Favourite holiday destination: Thailand.

Last book read: Business Stripped Bare by Sir Richard Branson.

What things are you most proud of: My family and my brand at Boost Drinks.