A packaging company is helping a chilled chocolate supplier deal with a surge in demand after appearing on Dragons' Den.

GWP Packaging - which has an office in Cricklade - is helping Steve Russell and Giles Atwell send off customer orders after a successful outing on the hit BBC show saw all five Dragons express interest in investing a lot of cash into the sweet treat supplier.

In the end, the duo behind Russell & Atwell secured £90,000 in funding from Peter Jones and Steven Bartlett in return for 20 per cent of the company.

They have since seen a spike in interest from the longstanding business-based competition's millions of viewers.

Having been founded late in 2019, the company offers five varieties of hand prepared and fresh chocolates which use no palm oil or preservatives and must be kept chilled.

Giles Atwell said: “Since the show, we have been blown away with the number of orders we have received through our website. The response has been truly exceptional!”

Since the launch of their e-commerce site in 2020, GWP have supplied branded packaging which is used for shipping online orders to local, regional, and international companies from a wide range of industries.

The business employs more than 100 staff, has over 500 customers and turns over more than £13 million.

Steve Russell added: “GWP has been excellent in supporting us since our launch, and we would like to say a huge thank you to them and the handful of partners that have helped us over the past 18 months.

"We are both incredibly grateful and excited that more people will be able to discover what chocolate should really taste like.” 

GWP Packaging sales manager Jay Daggar said: “We have been involved with Russell and Atwell since they launched their online shop, and they have been a great business to work with.

"We are pleased to be supporting them with the surge in demand after their impressive pitch, as well as a number of new projects they have in the pipeline.

“We are obviously delighted that these unique and high-quality products get the packaging they deserve. And I can confirm that the chocolates are every bit as delicious as the Dragons said they are, too.”

For more information on Russell & Atwell, visit www.russellandatwell.com For more information on GWP, visit www.gwp.co.uk