Sir Fruit: A fresh start for a refreshing brand

Designing a new production and distribution facility to enable growth and freshness.

Project Date : 2022

Client Overview

In 1997, the Baker brothers started a fast-food business called Amos Cole in Kloof, Durban. The homestyle roast chicken and freshly cooked vegetables delighted customers but the business model proved unsustainable.

Patrick was offered an opportunity to manage a fruit juice business in Durban called the House of Orange. Four years later Patrick bought equity in House of Orange and in due course David followed suit. They opened factories in Johannesburg and Cape Town, and in 2010 merged the business with Sir Juice to become the first national fresh-juice supplier to the hospitality industry in South Africa. In 2018, the business was rebranded as Sir Fruit

Project
Objectives

When a company like Sir Fruit scales up and its offerings evolve to meet changing client needs, a refreshed operating base becomes crucial. The conceptual facility was designed to accommodate the dynamic nature of the business, allowing for the growth of various new products and services.

This involved understanding both the current and future demands, aligning the facility's design with the company's strategic goals, and ensuring that the infrastructure supports scalability, flexibility, and efficiency. By doing so, Sir Fruit would remain competitive and responsive to market trends while maintaining high standards in quality and service delivery.

Project Approach

Meet the team and perform desktop research into the existing business and its history.
Visit the existing storage and Processing facilities.
Document existing operational processes and dissect the existing business by analyzing historical data.
Define the design objectives, operational requirements, and budgetary guidelines.

Build several different data models to estimate the required size, capacity, and required capabilities of the various operational needs.
Work closely with the team to refine the data models, tweak the variables, and agree on design guidelines.
Develop and present several conceptual layouts with different storage solutions and technologies.
Develop detailed drawings of the selected concept design to support the professional team in modifying and upgrading the earmarked warehouse.

Project Results

Provided strategic insight into their business case
Provide clear operational requirements for future RFP’s
Introduced the client to new technologies and ideas that could further improve their business.
Provided insight into budget expectations for the following financial years.

TFG has built a meaningful relationship with the Relog team over the last 2 years. They have been instrumental in the design of our Midrand facility operation to support our strategy for category specific bulk operations, which includes store and eComm fulfilment. It's been great working with the team, and I look forward to our next project!