How LittlePod was born

On a sunny day back in 2006, LittlePod’s founder Janet hosted a vanilla day for her local community in Farringdon, East Devon. Her friend from the States, an expert in the vanilla industry, hopped across the pond to tell people about the history and cultivation of this exotic spice.

The talk fascinated Janet and got her thinking. How could she spread the word of natural vanilla – which is generally underused in modern cooking – and help the people whose livelihoods depend on growing it?

By setting up a company! And one with 3 clear aims:

To create products which promote exciting new ways of using vanilla in the kitchen

To inform people of the diverse applications of vanilla and describe the benefits of using the natural stuff over its artificial counterparts

To help communities which rely on vanilla cultivation and conserve the fragile ecosystems in which vanilla is grown

Since LittlePod’s official launch in May 2010, we’ve remained true to these fundamental aims. But a lot’s changed too:

We’ve grown

From its beginnings as a one-woman operation, LittlePod has enlisted the help of no fewer than 10 graduates, 4 agencies, 3 part-time staff and our first full-time member of staff (the wonderful Clara). We've also linked up with the one and only Vanilla Queen Patricia Rain, who celebrated our one year anniversary with us at The Chelsea Physic Garden.

We’ve diversified

Our launch range consisted of vanilla pods, paste and extract. Since then we’ve dabbled in cake, fudge and ice cream, launched coffee and chocolate extracts and we’ve even brewed our own beer!

We’ve moved

From our humble beginnings in Janet’s kitchen, we moved production to the Food Innovation Service in Cornwall. Now, thanks to some snazzy new machines and the help of MAS, we’re back at LPHQ in Farringdon with a dedicated production space.

We’ve won awards

Including:

• Editor’s Choice in Delicious Magazine (2012)
• One of 10 Top New British Brands (2012)
• Great Taste Gold for Vanilla Beer (2012)
• Janet’s British Empire Medal for services to employment and culture in East Devon (2012)
• Taste of the West award (2011)
• The Design Programme case study (2010)

We’ve gone global

Since selling our first wares at Devon trade shows, LittlePod products can now be found across the UK, as well as in Austria, Finland, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Ireland, Japan, Portugal, Qatar and Scotland.