KELLY Blumberg from Nast near Tenbury has won a top retail award.

She is key account manager at Orchard Valley Foods in Burford.

Kelly attended a reception at the Royal Society of Arts in London to celebrate her appearance on this year’s The Grocer Top New Talent (TNT) List.

The TNT list recognises and rewards some of the extremely talented people who work in the food and drink industry, and showcases the diversity of roles.

Kelly was nominated for the TNT list by Orchard Valley Foods’ chairman, Mike Forrester.

In his submission about Kelly, he mentioned her skill at managing larger accounts and prospecting for new clients. He demonstrated the growth in her sales account responsibility, finishing with her current year’s sales budget of £6million, a substantial portion of the overall target for the Queen’s Award-winning confections, decorations and specialist ingredients’ company.

Kelly studied biology at Worcester University so does not come from a business studies, food or sales background.

Orchard Valley Foods employs just over 70 people and so is not a large company but this did not stop Kelly’s abilities being recognised.

Compared to many of the other recipients of the TNT award, Kelly is located in a rural area so shows that it is not necessary to work in a big city to get on.

“I’ve been privileged to be able to learn from all the team members at Orchard Valley Foods, as well as our customers and suppliers,” said Kelly.

“Orchard Valley Foods puts people first and values training, coaching, mentoring and feedback. I’ve particularly enjoyed working with global accounts on projects, working from a brief, developing products together all the way to launch.

"There is a great sense of satisfaction in seeing a finished product that might have been 18 months to two years in development hitting the retailers’ shelves.”