Meet the team

Dairy foods professional with 40 years’ experience (started in 1982) in the manufacture & sales of a range of dairy foods, including cheese & fermented products, gained with leading dairy companies in the UK and overseas. I joined Coombe Castle in 2011and now specialise in working with customers to develop business opportunities and realise their commercial goals.

Ben Hutchins is the Sales and Marketing Director and Coombe Castle International. His first role in dairy was in 2001 and having tried a few other product categories, he kept returning. He started his career at Sainsbury’s and worked on the team that opened, amongst others, the Calne store and launched the UK’s first grocery home delivery service trial with them in Bristol. Ben worked for Lye Cross Farm for nearly 11 years and previously with North Downs Dairy, now part of Ornua, bringing his dairy experience to about 17 years.

Technical & Operations Manager with a Food Technology degree and 25 years industry experience. Industry sectors include ready meals, processed meat as well as importing dairy, poultry and vegetables. At Coombe Castle my role covers quality, manufacturing, warehouse and distribution. My main responsibility is to ensure that our customer receive their orders at the quality they expect when they need them.

I have worked in the food industry in either marketing or sales roles for over 20 years. I joined Coombe Castle in 2015 and I am responsible for the design and brand development of Coombe Castle cheese and Devon Cream Co, exhibitions, website development, packaging, and the creation of POS materials.

I have spent most of my career working in the dairy industry, starting with a job in technical, a more creative role in NPD before moving into a sales and business development position. At Coombe Castle International I am responsible for international sales and business development for the UK, Ireland, China, Thailand, South Korea, Malaysia, Hong Kong, Singapore Australia and New Zealand as well as working on developing new markets. We are experts in exporting dairy products across the globe, with no task too big or too small. Contact me directly on : Cheryl@coombecastle.com

International Sales Manager with over 20 years commercial experience in the food industry. Initially working in categories of biscuits and confectionery, I moved into the dairy industry in 2005 and this is when my exporting experience started and I haven’t looked back, opening and developing markets across the globe. Since Brexit I have been managing our sister company CCI BV to service our EU clients as I am based in the Netherlands, and all sales into the Middle East and North Africa. If you have any interest in the very best cheese, cream, or butter from the UK, please feel free to contact me directly: Richard@coombecastle.com

International Sales Manager with over 20 years’ experience delivering Coombe Castle customer service within export, project management and NPD for a developing area of year-round feature products. I am responsible for sales and business development for Canada; looking after rapidly changing retailer needs and finding ways to offer new opportunities through established relationships. Keeping ideas new and fresh to offer excitement to the deli counter offering consumers the best possible varietal range.

I joined the Coombe Castle team with 9 years export experience across the Speciality and Fine Food sector, where I have worked across a number of International markets and with a wide range of different categories. I’m passionate about quality British produce and I love the opportunity to showcase and build the awareness of our great range of products to a wider international audience.

I’m responsible for the development of the US market for both the Coombe Castle range and our partner brands, working with a network of distributors and retailers in the market to build and develop the brand’s presence and sales. Contact me directly on: mhodgetts@coombecastle.com

With 20 years’ experience in specialty food and dairy, I joined Coombe castle in 2019 and oversee both retail and food service for the US market. My career in food started with culinary school in NYC in 2000. My first retail job was “behind the cheese counter” and from there I moved on to work in specialty food distribution and finally manufacturer sales, in both cheese and charcuterie. Bringing experience from all angles of the business I look forward to working with new partners at all levels of the business. Contact me directly on : lwilson@coombecastle.com

I have over 16 years’ experience in the food industry with a background in technical. I have worked for Coombe Castle since 2015, beginning in their QA team. My focus is now on project management and liaising with our suppliers and clients to ensure that exported products are compliant with the label regulations for their destination. I predominantly handle labelling for the EU and MENA territories, USA, Asia, Australia, New Zealand, and other developing countries.

Quality Supervisor with 6 years of experience working in food technical and NPD. I am responsible for the food safety and quality management system at Coombe Castle as well as developing new and exciting cream products.

A logistics professional with over 21 years of international experience. At Coombe Castle International I am responsible for exports and documentation whether by AIR ,SEA or LAND. Logistics management is essential to mitigate risks. This entails accuracy, problem-solving, timely order fulfillment and customer satisfaction. We at Coombe Castle have it covered, through years of experience in freight forwarding and working with trusted forwarders, shipping lines, airlines and hauliers.

Accountant With 33 years’ experience in finance. Initially I started work in a Chartered Accountants, then moved into industry. Joined Coombe Castle in 2010 and my role includes processing all accounting information, preparing management accounts and the preparation of government documents/ and reports required by the business. The business has grown significantly since joining so never a dull moment in the department.

Before joining Coombe Castle in 2019 I have had variety of roles including a learning support assistant in a special needs school, customer services in tyre industry and recruitment. Since joining Coombe Castle, I provide excellent customer service, order processing and support for customers in the UK, Ireland, Far East and Australasia.

Previously I have worked in tyre manufacturing and medical supplies industries before joining Coombe Castle in June 2019. I have worked in purchasing, planning, customer service and admin roles. My main responsibilities are export order processing and documentation, business development and administration for U.S. customers

I have over 20 years’ experience in customer service and since joining Coombe Castle my main responsibilities have been export order processing, documentation, business development and administration for customers in EU and Middle East. Since early 2022 I am also responsible for the administration and documentation for our sister company Coombe Castle BV, Netherlands where we facilitate orders for our EU customers post Brexit.