Blackburn confectioner lands life changing contract TV show ‘Aldi’s Next Big Thing’

An entrepreneur from Blackburn landed a life changing contract with a major national supermarket after being chosen on a TV show.

Yasir Patel featured in last night’s episode of Aldi’s Next Big Thing, which focused on the confectionery category. The 28-year-old is the founder of Cluster Club, a start up producing nutritional, on the go, ‘cluster’ snacks.

In the show, which is hosted by author and broadcaster Anita Rani, and Chris Bavin, of Britain's Best Home Cook and Eat Well for Less, hopeful suppliers compete for a space on Aldi’s shelves, before Aldi’s Julie Ashfield decides on the winner.

The family-owned snack company beat five other hopefuls to land the coveted contract, including the world’s first cocoa-free chocolate, vegan toffee and CBD gummies.

In the episode, Yasir was tasked with improving his packaging format, so it stood out better in stores. After also learning that he’d lost his usual manufacturer during filming, the father of two returned to Aldi HQ with a bigger pack format and robust new production factory, to secure an order to supply over 1,000 Aldi stores nationwide.

Yasir said: “I put everything I have into this - money, sweat, time and effort. Landing this contract means I will finally see a return – financially I can breathe. All the hard work was worth it, I am a supplier for Aldi. How do I even put that into words? I am living a dream.”

Julie Ashfield, Managing Director of Buying at Aldi UK, says: “Yas has been on a really challenging journey. He lost his manufacturer but picked himself back up and managed to get his own factory, making the product himself. That's really impressive, so I want to see this product do well!” 

Aldi’s Next Big Thing airs on Channel 4, every Tuesday at 8pm until 7th May 2024.