Outdoor ovens maker Uuni cooks up John Lewis listing

A West Lothian maker of outdoor ovens that recently smashed its fundraising target has secured a deal to supply department store John Lewis.

Uuni designer Kristian Tapaninaho has secured a deal to supply John Lewis. Picture: Rikard Osterlund

Broxburn-based Uuni, which set out to raise $50,000 (£38,350) via the Indiegogo crowdfunding platform and ended up netting more than $810,000, said its Uuni 3 wood-fired outdoor pizza oven is being stocked on the retailer’s website along with a range of accessories.

• READ MORE: Oven innovator Uuni fired up with £530,000 funding

Uuni co-founder Kristian Tapaninaho, who launched the company with his wife Darina Garland, said: “We’re excited about working with John Lewis.

“We’ve been incredibly lucky to have suppliers and stockists who have shown great support in backing Uuni and believing in our products. We look forward to seeing what’s next with John Lewis and how our relationship grows.”

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The firm said its Uuni 3 product can cook a pizza in just 60 seconds. It ran the Indiegogo campaign to fund the launch of its Uuni Pro device, described as the world’s first quad-fuelled outdoor oven, capable of running on pellets, wood, charcoal and gas.

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Tapaninaho recently picked up a £7,000 prize after being hailed as the “entrepreneur of the moment” at the Entrepreneuring Awards, hosted by business start-up accelerator programme Entrepreneurial Spark in partnership with Royal Bank of Scotland, accounting group KPMG, technology giant Dell EMC and law firm Harper Macleod.

The accolade came after Garland won the Shona Sibbald Women in Business Award at a ceremony organised by West Lothian Chamber of Commerce.

Uuni saw turnover soar by 300 per cent last year to reach £2.5 million, with sales of £450,000 in November alone.

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