‘I’m glad the contract ended’: Heston Blumenthal’s fury as Waitrose ends 12-year partnership with him ‘after getting tired of his unpredictability’
- Partnership spotted a Michelin-starred chef in TV ads and helped drive sales
- But John Lewis’ supermarket bosses were tired of his “unpredictability.”
Heston Blumenthal has said he is ‘pleased’ that his 12-year partnership with Waitrose has ended after the supermarket got ‘tired of its unpredictability’.
Over the weekend, The Mail on Sunday announced that Waitrose had decided to drop the chef following a partnership that saw the Michelin-starred chef star in TV adverts and help boost sales.
Bosses at the supermarket chain, owned by John Lewis, are said to have terminated Blumenthal’s contract, worth ‘hundreds of thousands of pounds a year’, after getting fed up with his ‘unpredictability’.
It has enraged the chief, 56, who said: ‘This is so disgusting.’
He added: “I’m glad the contract has ended.”
Heston Blumenthal has said he is ‘happy’ his 12-year partnership with Waitrose has ended
Bosses at John Lewis-owned supermarket chain reportedly terminated Blumenthal’s contract after growing tired of his ‘unpredictability’
The remark about his supposed ‘unpredictability’ sent the chef boiling over.
He suggests it is related to his genius for coming up with improbable dishes such as snail porridge and egg-and-bacon ice cream.
“Unpredictable to me is a non-linear process that turns into creativity,” he says.
Initially focused on festive food, the Heston from Waitrose range proved hugely popular.
For one year, his orange Christmas pudding was in such demand that it was put up for sale online at 15 times the retail price after selling out in stores.
Blumenthal added: ‘We are evaluating the positioning of every product sold in Waitrose – some are our intellectual properties, others are collective.
Initially focused on festive food, the Heston from Waitrose range proved hugely popular
‘Within six months we plan to relaunch those products under the new brand name, for example Heston’s.’
The chef moved to France in 2019, a year after having a child with French real estate agent Stephanie Gouveia, 35.
In January, I announced that the chief, who also has three adult children with ex-wife Zanna, was now engaged to French businesswoman Melanie Ceysson.
