Wilson Vale wins £1.75m Conference Aston contract

Independent catering company Wilson Vale has won its single largest contract to date, a £1.75m full-service contract with Conference Aston in Birmingham.

The three-year contract will start on 1 August, when Wilson Vale will take over from Sodexo at the 163-bedroom residential conference centre, which is part of Aston University.

As well as managing catering and hospitality services under a seven-day operation, it will manage housekeeping and bar services. A team of 46 Wilson Vale staff will be involved in running the contract at the venue, which attracts up to 55,000 hotel guests and conference delegates each year.

Andrew Wilson, co-founder of Wilson Vale, said: "Over the last three years we have steadily developed our conference and venues portfolio, so to have gained this flagship venue shows our understanding of the specific needs of this niche market. We were up against some industry heavyweights, and it is wonderful that Conference Aston has bought into our food and our culture to drive their business forward."

Samantha Brown, head of Conference Aston, said: "Wilson Vale stood out during the tender process with their passion for fresh, local, homemade food and we are looking forward to taking our food offer across our restaurants and bar to exciting new places as we progress the partnership."

The value of the company's conference portfolio has doubled over the last 12 months, representing 15% of the business, with the remainder of the portfolio made up of business and industry and private education clients.

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