We are 10 on 27th February!
The Feed marks its 10th birthday today. Our organisation has changed a lot over the years but being passionate about food and passionate about people is a common theme throughout.
We caught up with Nick Applin who has known The Feed throughout our journey. He is pictured above with his wife Vanessa at our Waterloo Park Dog Show last May.
As a long-standing supporter, Board Trustee for a while, and regular customer at our Waterloo Park café, he is well-placed to reflect on our 10 years so we asked him for some thoughts.
How did you first get to know The Feed?
My first contact was way back in the very early days when The Feed was just starting out. I had been put in contact with Barry Allard, The Feed's founder, who visited me at my office in Norwich. He told me of his plans to help people who faced homelessness and other serious barriers to employment. The Feed was to be a vehicle to help these people.
I immediately said yes, I would get involved, because I really liked Barry and felt that I could make a difference by being involved.
Tell us about the early years of The Feed.
‘Off the Street and into the Kitchen’ was the early strapline for The Feed. It was about helping people to change their lives through learning cooking skills in a catering kitchen in the city. This would help give people confidence as well as skills and hence a better chance of employment.
Barry then had a vision of opening a food stall on Norwich Market which opened in 2017. This was the first place The Feed had a public face and sold its food.
You were on The Feed's Board of Trustees for a while. What were the big issues at that time?
The issues at the time were all based on building a strong structure for the organisation. Making sure there were good people in the key their roles and seeing how the Board could support them. There was also the issue of obtaining funding and generating sales as the food retailing side developed.
You’ve been a loyal supporter throughout our 10 years. What is it about The Feed that motivates you?
I feel that all these years on I’m still immensely proud to be associated with The Feed and the work that they do here in Norwich - my home city. Lucy Parish, the CEO, is heading up a dynamic team of individuals and proving herself to be, quite simply, an outstanding leader in the most challenging of times.
I’m very proud to be supporting, in any way that I can, this amazing team who make such a difference to so many people in Norwich.
That’s why I’m here to support. To be a part of that difference.
Thanks for answering our questions, Nick, and for all you've done for The Feed in the last 10 years.
