Warrington scaleup FuelHub has appointed Chris Oake as its new head of operations.
The premium meal prep company is gearing up to expand production and enhance its facility to meet growing customer demand.
FuelHub, which welcomed Steve King as its new head of growth in March, is endorsed by a string of athletes and has grown turnover to £4m and staff numbers to 34 in just six years.
The business – founded by CEO Michelle Laithwaite with her husband James, a former professional rugby league player, who serves as COO – has attracted high-profile investors and won some of the biggest names in sport as clients.
Michelle Laithwaite spoke about the journey at our recent FUEL Liverpool event, supported by Growth Platform and Liverpool Business School at Liverpool John Moores University.
Oake brings a unique and varied background spanning the automotive and food manufacturing industries. He began his career as a technician for BMW before transitioning into the food sector at Proseal, the leading original equipment manufacturer, where he worked as a project manager.
During his time at Proseal, he successfully delivered multi-million-pound installations across the globe, gaining deep insight into operational excellence in food manufacturing environments.
Oake has a longstanding relationship with FuelHub, having worked with co-founders Michelle and James Laithwaite during his time at Proseal, helping FuelHub install one of Proseal’s products.
As head of operations, Oake will be focused on transforming FuelHub from a high-functioning kitchen into a fully streamlined food factory.
His priorities include driving efficiency across every stage of production, from the point of order through to dispatch, while maintaining premium product quality.
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“After visiting the site during my time at Proseal, and seeing the scale of the opportunity first hand, I knew FuelHub was a business I wanted to stay close to over the years,” said Oake. “The business is ambitious, the team is enthusiastic, and I believe we are only just getting started.
“FuelHub’s rapidly expanding subscriber base, as well as its official partnerships with Matchroom and other elite sports teams and athletes are only scratching the surface of what is possible, and I want to help build an operational infrastructure that can support our growth.”
James Laithwaite said: “Chris is a brilliant addition to the team. He brings a rare blend of technical, operational and customer-focused experience that will be instrumental as we grow. His understanding of large-scale food operations is second to none, and we are thrilled to have him on board as we enter this next stage.”