Riverside Aromatics Opens its Doors

Peter Cannon and David Rowe recently formed Riverside Aromatics Ltd. (Poole, UK) to supply aroma chemicals and essential oils. With over 30 years of commercial and technical experience with Oxford Chemicals, BBA and De Monchy Aromatics, Riverside's founders are using world-wide partners to reflect the changes in the global F&F industry. As a part of this, Riverside is partnering with Jitian Aroma Chemical Co. (Tengzhou, China), manufacturers of high impact aroma chemicals such as pyrazines, thiazoles and furans. P&Fnow recently spoke with David Rowe about the new company, its goals and partnerships.

P&Fnow: What made you and Peter Cannon decide to set up Riverside Aromatics Ltd.? What need does the company fill that other aroma chemical/essential oil suppliers don’t?

Rowe: Peter and I are veterans of both small and larger companies. The smaller companies have given us very broad experience, covering areas outside of the “typical” sales and technical areas. For example, I have covered regulatory issues and certifications such as kosher, while Peter has had hands-on experience in the warehouse and even has a forklift truck license! After a great deal of thought we decided we wanted to put those skills in a company we can “design.” We are both chemists, so Riverside Aromatics is a 100% technical company. Our aim in setting up the company was to bridge the gap between producer and consumer in a clear and transparent manner, while adding a new form of technical co-operation that other companies can’t offer. In the modern world traceability is of paramount importance.

P&Fnow: You mentioned that Riverside Aromatics is using world-wide partners to “reflect the changes in the global F&F industry.” What are these changes and how is your company going to address them?

Rowe: In terms of world-wide partners, this is twofold. The F&F industry is undergoing major changes as standards of living rise across the world; after all, flavors and fragrances are not the essentials of life in the way that basic foods and clean water are (despite advertising companies’ attempts to convince us otherwise) and the demand reflects disposable income. As standards of living rise in the Far East, the Indian subcontinent, Latin America and Eastern Europe, these countries and regions become new markets for growth. Secondly, the continual concentration of the market into fewer and bigger organizations is demanding different qualities and abilities from its suppliers. Riverside, with its partners, is responding to this change by offering a service and technical support that the market demands.

P&Fnow: What does Jitian Aroma Chemical Co. offer to Riverside as a partner? In turn, what does Riverside offer Jitian?

Rowe: Jitian Aroma Chemical Co. is an excellent aroma chemicals manufacturer whom we trust and whom we have found to provide consistent quality materials. Riverside Aromatics will be help to guide Jitian to ensure that its qualities match those required by companies in the developed world. We also provide a route into the European market, because we can supply the regulatory and other information that is required as well as understanding the commercial realities of aroma chemical sales. In addition, our geographical advantage is beneficial, as it is much easier to supply the Western European countries from our warehouse in the United Kingdom than it is from China.

P&Fnow: Are there any other partnerships in the works?

Rowe: Our interest is in partnerships where we can see real synergies, and in this quality vastly outweighs quantity! We are, of course, open to new suggestions, but we don’t want to have a long list of representations where it’s simply impossible to provide “added value,” and where it may even be difficult to avoid conflicts of interest.

P&Fnow: You've stressed the importance of China. Other than your partnership with Jitian, how do you hope to address the growing F&F industry in China?

Rowe: China will continue to be a growing force within the F&F market in the coming years. Apart from Jitian, we already have relationships with other manufactures in China and we are sure these will continue to develop in the future. We believe that China will continue to be a very important source for the F&F raw materials in the future, but the growing domestic F&F demands will also make this a very exciting region to be supplying in the coming years. Beyond that—we don’t know! All we can say with certainty is that the pace of change in the world is accelerating, and our aim is to try to keep pace with that change, rather than to predict its direction.

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