WHEN former Worcester King’s School student Bec Jeavons-Fellows returned from university in London to Worcestershire, she decided to set up a business with her mum making and selling a traditional Canadian snack to her grandmother’s original recipe.

And now, two and a half years later, the pair’s Nanaimo Bars are being sold in Selfridges and Harvey Nicols in London, on line and could even end up on the shelves of Tesco across the country. They are also the official suppliers for Canada House in London.

Bec, aged 27 who graduated with a degree in business management, explained: “My mum is Canadian and she used to make them for me and my brothers as a special treat. They can be eaten as a snack or as a dessert with ice cream.”

The basic recipe is a chocolate coconut biscuit base with a butter cream layer and a Belgian chocolate on the top, although her mum Lynne, aged 53, uses a recipe that has been passed down through the family from her mum Patricia McDonald who lives on Vancouver Island.

The name Nanaimo comes from a city on Vancouver Island and the Canadians chill the bars and sometimes put them in the freezer to make sure the middle layer is firm, said Bec, from Bricklehampton, near Pershore.

The business – known as The Maple Food Company – began to take off when Bec joined up with regional food group Heart of England Fine Foods (HEFF) and went to a “Meet the Buyer” event at Selfridges early in 2014.

HEFF put the business forwards and Selfridges confirmed it wanted to know more. Bec and her mum had to make their pitch.

The department store gave them the thumbs up and before they knew it their bars were being snapped up.

“I could not believe that we got into Selfridges. We knew it was a good product because it always had really good feedback from friends. Selfridges liked the fact that it was different. Selfridges stocked it as a trial and they decided to keep it after that,” said Bec.

“I just send Harvey Nicols an email and sent samples the next day.”

She added that they were approached by Tesco a few months ago inviting them to be part of its Tesco BackIt! campaign. The supermarket giant is trying to help small producers get a leg up in the food industry through a crowdfunding opportunity.

Each producer sets a target for its crowdfunding – The Maple Food Company set its target at £10,000 – and if they reach it Tesco provides help, advice and mentoring from food industry experts. For more information about The Maple Food Company and its Nanaimo bars visit http://www.nanaimobarstheoriginal.com/ and to find out about the crowdfunding scheme and/or pledge support visit https://backit.tesco.com/3ce7

Bec explained they have a time limit to meet their target and if they achieve that there is no guarantee they will get into Tesco stores – but there is a good chance

Production of the Nanaimo bars takes place at a unit in Pershore and Bec and Lynne have introduced a range of different flavours – original, mint, caramel, raspberry and now maple pecan, which is exclusive to the campaign.

“We are looking to raise funds to expand our production and develop new and exciting flavours, which will help us to achieve our dream of scaling up into more retailers across the UK and supplying Nanaimo bars nationally,” added Bec.