The founders behind Afro-Caribbean super-store Samis Online have launched their very first West African Ready Meals brand, Oyetty Meals.
The carefully selected ingredients are mostly sourced and imported from West Africa and bring all the flavours from home-cooked African meals straight to the dinner table without the fuss of preparing and cooking.
The value of the current frozen meal sector in the UK is approximately worth £7.21 billion GBP according to a report carried out by The British Frozen Food Federation (BFFF) in 2022, creating a huge market opportunity for Oyetty Meals. On average Brits buy over 3million ready-meals a day!
Oyetty Meals has launched online and in the Samis Cash & Carry store in Birmingham this week, with plans to expand into UK supermarkets later this year, filling a gap in the market where currently most cuisines available within the ready-meal area do not include African food.
Founders of Oyetty Meals, husband and wife duo Olusegun Akande (42) and Oyetola Isola (40) are driving the business forward in a mission to bring authentic, healthy West African food to a wider UK market.
Olusegun Akande, Co-founder of Samis Online and Oyetty Meals, said: “We are delighted to be bringing Oyetty Meals to the market. Covid had a huge impact on our business, meaning we had to pivot and fortunately the online side of the business really took off in 2020. The success meant we could invest money back into the business and offer convenience meals as another option. After two years in the making, we are delighted to be able to offer our meals, which are cooked with care and flare by our expert chefs to our longstanding customers. They have been crafted to balance nutrition, taste and most importantly the Nigerian authentic flavour.”
The meals are frozen instantly to ensure the taste and nutrition stays intact and to ensure the customer experiences the authentic taste of West Africa in their homes. The meals are microwave-suitable and ready in as little as three minutes.
Along with launching Oyetty Meals, the entrepreneurs have also launched the Oyetty Foundation, which provides 5% of all Oyetty Meals sales to Nigerian families that have children with additional/special needs to provide help, support and information.
Oyetola Isola, Co-founder of Samis Online and Oyetty Meals, said: “We love good food, and we believe a good diet contributes to good health and a happier life. We want everyone one to be able to enjoy tasty authentic Nigerian dishes without the fuss of sourcing ingredients, scanning recipes and most especially finding the time to cook it.”
Olusegun and his wife, Oyetola, launched the Cash & Carry business, Samis Online, in 2011 after noticing a lack of original African-Caribbean food ingredients to buy in the west midlands part of the UK. They have since opened stores in Birmingham and Northampton.
Due to the success of the cash and carry business, the entrepreneurs have created their own exciting line of products including seasonings, rice, different flour, beans, fishery products and lots more, under the brand of Pride of Africa and Old Africa. The duo also opened a takeaway restaurant and bar, Empress Bar and Grill, serving the best of African cuisine to the local consumers in Birmingham.
