James Averdieck: Gü, The Coconut Collab and Spooners Desserts

This August, I walked through Borough Market with my Dad, Jim Averdieck, to hear how he built three businesses from scratch. 

Inspired by Belgian patisserie, Jim began developing the now-famous Gü chocolate soufflé in the late ’90s, around the kitchen table of our family home in Brussels. When we moved back to London, Gü launched into UK supermarkets in 2003. Within its first full year of trading, the business reached £3 million in turnover, built from roughly £60,000 of initial seed capital. In 2010, Gü was sold to Noble Foods for £32 million.

In 2015, Jim spotted the growing shift towards dairy-free and plant-based eating and launched The Coconut Collaborative, creating a range of natural coconut yoghurts and desserts. Today, it’s one of Europe’s fastest-growing dairy-free brands. In 2026, he expanded the brand further with coconut water, kefir and single cream.

And most recently, Jim launched Spooners Desserts, bringing American-style cookie dough to the UK — indulgent, unapologetic and designed to be eaten straight from the tub or baked into a skillet and shared.

25 years. Three businesses. One serial entrepreneur. From a daughter's perspective. This is the story of how my dad did it.