Former West Midlands dessert factory to be auctioned off after hundreds of staff made redundant

A former dessert factory near Worcester is set to be auctioned off.

The former home of Elisabeth the Chef goes under the hammer on November 11 with a guide price of £2.5 million.

The 8.27-acre site in Lower Broadheath closed in August, with all 367 members of staff made redundant.

Elisabeth the Chef had been based at the factory since 1995 and in its 90s heyday had tie-ins with the Premier League and the Spice Girls.

The chilled desserts company was acquired by Leeds-based Country Style in 2017 and earlier this year, plans to shut down the Martley Road site were revealed.

Property auctioneer Allsop is marketing the factory as a “former food manufacturing facility with warehouse and office accommodation” totalling 8,883 square metres.

The site is described as an “asset management and potential redevelopment opportunity” that might lend itself to a “variety of alternative uses”, subject to its new owners obtaining all necessary consents.

“The property is arranged to provide several large, interconnecting manufacturing buildings with food preparation areas, staff welfare, loading and warehouse accommodation,” the auctioneer states.

“Offices are located on site providing two main office blocks with a variety of open plan/partitioned and storage accommodation.

“Externally there is a large surfaced car park area and loading areas to the front of the building.”

Bids are being invited on the freehold tenure of the site at Allsop’s online auction on November 11.

Since Elisabeth the Chef closed in August, travellers have had to be removed from the site after setting up an illegal camp.

At least 10 caravans parked up at the factory in September and were given a deadline by which to leave by the police.

In 2024, Elisabeth the Chef was fined £18,000 by the Environment Agency and ordered to pay prosecution costs of £52,000 after polluting Laugherne Brook, causing fish to die.