Initial Catering Services, part of the Rentokil Initial group and the largest contractor in the school meals sector with some 3,000 contracts, has launched a new division in order to target business and industry catering clients more aggressively.
Autograph Foodservice, the newly-branded division, is intended to evoke a more modern and upmarket image than the parent name implies.

Jim Walker, chief executive of Initial Catering Services explained: 'Rentokil is best known for pest control and the Initial name is best known for cleaning and washroom services. In order to win more blue-chip catering clients, we felt we needed to create some distance from the Initial brand and come up with a sexier name.

'Having a separate name and division for business and industry contracts also means that, where a facilities management contract is run by one of our competitors, they can still consider using us for the catering operation,' he added.

'It would obviously be out of the question for them to consider bringing us in under the Initial banner because we'd be in competition with them for the other services.'

Initial Catering Services first began targeting business and industry clients four years ago and now has some 135 contracts in this sector — all rolled into the Autograph division.