Adur & Worthing’s Business Personality Of The Year Uses Business To Support Brighton & Hove Albion FC

Since signing her first contract to supply match-day pies at Brighton and Hove Albion’s home ground ten years ago, Jo Hunter’s handcrafted cakes and bakes business, Piglet’s Pantry, has gone from strength to strength.

Success that Jo says wouldn't have been possible without the opportunity and continued support the club have given her.

Since finding success at Brighton and Hove Albion, over time, Piglet’s Pantry has become a thriving supplier of baked goods for large venues across the country, including Chelsea’s Stamford Bridge and Leicester City’s King Power Stadium.

To give thanks to the club that gave Jo her launch pad, Piglet’s Pantry have signed as Official Matchday Pie sponsor of Brighton and Hove Albion, and have committed to donating 10% of sales of their best-selling mixed pie box to the club’s official charity, Albion in the Community, between now and the end of the football season.

During the pandemic, Jo also added another string to her bow and Piglet’s Pantry began delivering afternoon teas and treats to the doorsteps of hungry customers, including some celebrity fans. This new venture resulted in Jo recently winning Adur & Worthing’s Business Personality of the Year award, an accolade Jo dedicates to her ‘wonderful growing family of Piglets, working brilliantly together behind the scenes.’

Although the business is now thriving, it did have humble beginnings - Jo’s first premises was a cupboard on Shoreham High Street, which she called her ‘pantry’ and it was used as a base to sell sausage rolls and pies to passers by. Jo coupled ‘Pantry’ with ‘Piglet’, a reference to her childhood nickname and Piglet’s Pantry was born.

When the future of Brighton and Hove Albion became uncertain, back in 2005, alongside her then young children, Jo was a part of the community effort to reinstate the club within their home city.

After meeting with the club, Jo was invited to tender and successfully won a matchday catering contract at the new American Express Community Stadium. She had an unprecedented start to her first match day, when all Piglet’s pies sold out before kick-off, so to meet growing demand, quick-thinking Jo setup a Piglet’s Pantry production base in Worthing.

Jo’s passion for the club extends beyond business and she owns four Brighton and Hove Albion season tickets, which her family of fellow supporters share. The club was a big part of her upbringing and Jo has fond memories of her grandfather putting hot pies in his pockets to keep him warm at her earliest games and remembers her mum serving steak to Steve Foster at the Kings Club in Brighton after the matches.

Jo said:

“I’m very proud of what Brighton and Hove Albion have achieved. I feel like I’m a part of the club’s family and it’s such a huge part of my life, which is why deciding to be an official sponsor of the club felt so natural to me. We’ve embedded ourselves at Brighton and Hove Albion - hand in glove. We both work hard to give the fans the best experience that we can and because we were there when the stadium opened, it’s ingrained in our DNA.”