Piglet's Pantry become Official Matchday Pie sponsor

From pantry to pitch: How Adur & Worthing’s Business Personality of the Year is using her business to support her beloved Brighton & Hove Albion Football Club, whilst donating proceeds to our official charity, Albion in the Community.

BHAFC

2021-11-19T09:00:00Z

Piglet’s Pantry have signed as Official Matchday Pie sponsor of Brighton and Hove Albion.

Since signing her first contract to supply match-day pies at Brighton & Hove Albion’s home ground ten years ago, Jo Hunter’s handcrafted cakes and bakes business, Piglet’s Pantry, has gone from strength to strength; success that Jo says wouldn't have been possible without the opportunity and continued support the club have given her.

Since finding success at Brighton and Hove Albion, over time, Piglet’s Pantry has become a thriving supplier of baked goods for large venues across the country, including Chelsea’s Stamford Bridge and Leicester City’s King Power Stadium.

To give thanks to the club that gave Jo her launch pad, Piglet’s Pantry have signed as Official Matchday Pie sponsor of Brighton & Hove Albion, and have committed to donating 10% of sales of their best-selling mixed pie box to the club’s official charity, Albion in the Community, between now and the end of the football season.

During the pandemic, Jo also added another string to her bow and Piglet’s Pantry began delivering afternoon teas and treats to the doorsteps of hungry customers, including some celebrity fans.

This new venture resulted in Jo recently winning Adur & Worthing’s Business Personality of the Year award, an accolade Jo dedicates to her ‘wonderful growing family of Piglets, working brilliantly together behind the scenes.’

Although the business is now thriving, it did have humble beginnings - Jo’s first premises was a cupboard on Shoreham High Street, which she called her ‘pantry’ and it was used as a base to sell sausage rolls and pies to passers by.

Jo coupled ‘Pantry’ with ‘Piglet’, a reference to her childhood nickname and Piglet’s Pantry was born.

When the future of Brighton & Hove Albion became uncertain, back in 2005, alongside her then young children, Jo was a part of the community effort to reinstate the club within their home city.

After meeting with the club, Jo was invited to tender and successfully won a matchday catering contract at the new American Express Community Stadium.

She had an unprecedented start to her first match day, when all Piglet’s pies sold out before kick-off, so to meet growing demand, quick-thinking Jo setup a Piglet’s Pantry production base in Worthing.

Jo’s passion for the club extends beyond business and she owns four Brighton and Hove Albion season tickets, which her family of fellow supporters share.

The club was a big part of her upbringing and Jo has fond memories of her grandfather putting hot pies in his pockets to keep him warm at her earliest games and remembers her mum serving steak to Steve Foster at the Kings Club in Brighton after the matches.

Jo said, “I’m very proud of what Brighton and Hove Albion have achieved.

I feel like I’m a part of the club’s family and it’s such a huge part of my life, which is why deciding to be an official sponsor of the club felt so natural to me.

We’ve embedded ourselves at Brighton & Hove Albion - hand in glove.

We both work hard to give the fans the best experience that we can and because we were there when the stadium opened, it’s ingrained in our DNA.”

Since pivoting the business in lockdown to deliver bakes and treats directly to customers homes, not only do Piglet’s Pantry warm up hungry fans at the stadium, their range of pies and sausage rolls are available to order online for UK-wide delivery, to ensure fans don’t go hungry whilst cheering on the Seagulls from home.

Between now and the end of the football season, when you purchase one of Piglet’s Pantry’s mixed pie boxes, Piglet’s Pantry will give you 10% off with the code BHAFCPIE10 and donate 10% of the sales generated to support Brighton and Hove Albion’s official charity, Albion in the Community.

The full range of Piglet’s Pantry cakes and bakes, including their award-winning pies and sausage rolls, can be purchased for next day delivery via the website: pigletspantry.co.uk/BHAFC.

Use the code BHAFCPIE10 at checkout on the Piglet’s Pantry website, pigletspantry.co.uk/BHAFC, to receive 10% off Piglet’s Pantry mixed pie box, valid until 23:59 22 May 2022. Offer applies to the mixed pie box only. Delivery to UK mainland only.

10% of the income generated from the sale of each Piglet’s Pantry mixed pie box, until 23:59 on 22 May 2022, will go to Albion in the Community, registered Charity number: 1110978. Donations apply to purchases of the mixed pie box only.