BIG INTERVIEW
turnover
TRENDS into
Turning
From importing chocolate fountains for weddings to manufacturing and supplying dessert equipment and ingredients in more than 70 countries, David Archer, Managing Director of Sephra Europe Ltd & Sephra
USA LLC, reflects on the pivotal moments, bold decisions and creative thinking behind the company’s global success. Kiran Grewal reports.
D
avid Archer’s route into the dessert and confectionery sector was anything but conventional. From performing
in a wedding band to building Sephra into an international supplier of dessert equipment, ingredients and confectionery, David has spent two decades turning emerging trends into scalable global opportunities. In this exclusive interview, he reflects on the milestones, challenges and innovations shaping Sephra’s continued growth.
David, take us back to the beginning — how did Sephra start, and what first inspired you to turn a passion for chocolate fountains into a global dessert equipment and ingredients business? David Archer: As a semi pro musician with a wedding band called Big Night Out, I had no background in the dessert business. Working for a musical instrument retailer, I moved into field sales in the Internet Marketing industry. The popularity of my band led me to start
a wedding entertainment agency, which in turn got me involved in F&B. Realising that chocolate fountains were becoming a
14 • KENNEDY’S CONFECTION • DECEMBER/JANUARY 2025/26
trend at weddings, I decided I should add a Sephra Commercial Chocolate Fountain to my portfolio. Since 2003, Sephra had been making a name for itself with its innovative fountains. Having caught my eye, it became my brand of choice. Such was the success of this, I set up an
e-commerce business to start importing and selling fountains, leading to the birth of my first distribution and retail business - Chocolate Fountain Warehouse (now
SOMETIMES ALL YOU CAN DO IS REACT TO THINGS BEYOND YOUR CONTROL, HOWEVER, IF WE ARE TO DO SO, IT IS IMPORTANT THAT WE REACT QUICKLY WITH LEVEL HEADS AND AVOID PANICKING
rebranded to
CFW.co.uk). In 2007, I forged a partnership with Rick Muir, the founder of Sephra in the USA, becoming an exclusive distributor for Europe and the Middle East, and heralding the birth of Sephra Europe Ltd. We soon evolved from merely distributing chocolate fountains to offering a wide array of dessert equipment, ingredients, and confectionery, including the successful Sephra Popcorn range. In 2019, I bought Rick out in the States, giving Sephra Europe Ltd full control to solidify its status as a trailblazer. We now manufacture and distribute dessert- making, patisserie, and bakery equipment, ingredients, and confectionery for the foodservice and retail industries in over 70 countries. Operating from our own facilities in both the UK and the USA, within the group, we continue to operate a wholesale distribution business,
CFW.co.uk, which distributes over 1,200 products. Our customers are mainly foodservice
operators and distributors, but in the UK, we also supply major retailers with Sephra Popcorn. It’s found in cinema and theatre cafés & shops. Additionally, we sell products directly via our own websites and
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