>>fiona mulroy, shropshire spice company

Juggling work with bringing up two young children means that Fiona Mulroy, joint owner of the Shropshire Spice Company, has to organise her week with military precision.
“This is an extremely busy time for us,” Mulroy admits. “We were relisted by Tesco in August, so are currently building up the volume. It has definitely livened things up.”
Originally formed in the 1970s but taken over six years ago by Mulroy and her husband Robert Bulpitt, the Shropshire Spice Company produces spice mixes for drinks, a gourmet stuffing range, bread sauce, salad dressings and dips.
The stuffing range is listed in Sainsbury, Tesco and Waitrose, while the full portfolio is sold across independents and delis.
“Robert has a background in finance and computing while my background is in advertising, marketing and promotion so our combined experience makes us a good team,”
she says.
Mulroy’s week starts at 6-6.30am on Monday when her children wake her up.
But since September, when her eldest child started school, she has been able to spend more time in the office at Clun, Shropshire, which employs 15 members of staff. She is currently working on a range of projects and last week, for example, divided her time between evaluating new recipes and flavours and working on “an exciting project with the multiples”.
The company has also just relaunched its packaging and Mulroy has been conducting research into web sites, direct mail and e-commerce. “We want to move the business on, but it needs research first,” she says.
But Mulroy doesn’t spend all of her week behind a desk. “Last week I had my overalls on and was working on the production line. The orders need to go out. It doesn’t matter who does it. It is all hands on deck.
“Robert joins in too. He was on the fork-lift truck last week,” she adds.
orders from the multiples mean all hands on deck