We sat down with Sean Tilley, President of Tilley Distribution, a global distributor of food ingredients and flavor and fragrance products, as he shares his perspective on the company’s operations, strategic growth through mergers and acquisitions, and the complexities of managing a worldwide supply chain. Rabbi Jenkins, OU Kosher rabbinic coordinator also joins the conversation to discuss the importance of kosher certification in the industry. Together, they provide a comprehensive look at what food manufacturers need from a distributor with a global footprint and how Tilley is meeting those needs.  

From market trends and customer expectations to the challenges of navigating a global network, Sean and Rabbi Jenkins offer a candid and in-depth look at the inner workings of Tilley and the role it plays in the food manufacturing ecosystem. 

OU Kosher: So Sean, if you wouldn’t mind introducing yourself and giving us an overview of Tilley and your role? 

Sean Tilley: I’m Sean Tilley, a third-generation Tilley in the chemical distribution or ingredient distribution business. I grew up in the business, doing everything from sweeping floors to labeling bags to sitting in customer service. I got more involved in the strategy of the business as I took on a leadership role. We realized we needed to change and gain scale to be relevant in the markets we served. 

Markets Served by Tilley 

OU Kosher: What markets does Tilley serve? 

Sean Tilley: We serve the food ingredients markets and the flavor and fragrance markets, with a little bit of industrial business. Food ingredients, flavor, and fragrance segments make up about 70% of our revenue today. 

Tilley’s Recapitalization and Acquisition Strategy 

OU Kosher: Can you talk about Tilley’s recapitalization and acquisition strategy? 

Sean Tilley: We recapitalized our ownership structure and brought in a capital partner in 2020 to allow some Tilley shareholders to realize value and to do M&A. We made acquisitions to provide scale to our customers and supplier partners. We acquired Ingredient Solutions Incorporated in 2021, making Tilley a market leader in hydrocolloids. We also acquired Phoenix Aromas and Essential Oils, becoming the largest distributor supplier to the flavor and fragrance industry in the United States. 

The Role of Kosher Certification in Tilley’s Operations 

OU Kosher: How does kosher certification fit into Tilley’s operations? 

Sean Tilley: We have a responsibility in traceability, food safety, and product integrity. Anything we handle, store, ship, blend, or repackage has a quality control, food safety, and kosher element. Our ingredients may not be certified kosher when they arrive, but we ensure quality control and food safety throughout our distribution centers. 

Rabbi Jenkins: Everything Tilley does, especially with Phoenix, involves ingredients from around the world for the flavor industry. They may blend or repack, but most of their work is repackaging for smaller containers. 

OU Kosher: Is OU Kosher involved in the certification of Tilley’s suppliers? 

Rabbi Jenkins: Some of them, yes. We source ingredients from producers certified by OU or other organizations. I’m involved with some of those suppliers. 

Sean Tilley: We bring materials into our facilities, package or blend them, and provide quality control and handling procedures. We own the operation around the product, controlling the quality cycle, which separates us from other importers, brokers, dealers, and distributors. 

OU Kosher: Did the M&A happen before or during COVID? 

Sean Tilley: It happened during COVID, right into the eye of the storm. It created more problems and headaches, but everyone in the supply chain experienced similar challenges. 

Rabbi Jenkins: Companies must make strategic decisions to stay viable. Tilley made the right move by jumping into the big pond from the small pond. 

Addressing Climate Change, Supply Chain and Sustainability 

OU Kosher: Has climate change affected reliability of the supply chain and your business? 

Sean Tilley: I follow trends, and currently, sustainability is a major focus. Customers, especially in personal care and food, are pressing for sustainable sourcing and alternatives to traditional products. We see many inquiries about carbon footprint and climate impact. So it affects us to the extent that our customers are looking for sustainable sourcing.  

OU Kosher: How do you balance sustainability with commercial viability? 

Sean Tilley: It’s a difficult problem to solve. Non-renewable chemistries are hard to replace, and sustainable alternatives may not be commercially viable. As an industry, we need to think about how to balance functionality and sustainability. 

We want environmentally friendly products, but it’s essential to be realistic about the process. We can’t go from zero to 60; it needs to be done slowly. 

Every company is conscious of sustainability, and we participate in third-party verification programs like Ecovatus. Our customers require participation in these programs, and it will continue to grow. 

OU Kosher: Do you spend a lot of time educating your customers and suppliers? 

Sean Tilley: Yeah, so what’s the main lesson for them? On the customer side, we want them to be informed about what’s going on in the markets around the products we’re supplying. Whether it’s freight logistic challenges due to conflicts in the Middle East or a bad crop in Indonesia, we want our customers to be aware of these issues so they can make good purchasing decisions. 

They understand where the costs and available supply-demand fundamentals are going. On the producer side, they’re far removed from the end-use market trend, what customers are seeing from a competitive standpoint, or what they’re looking for in terms of alternatives. So, the distributor is a source of market intel and a pause on where the demand is headed. We’re feeding information in both directions. 

OU Kosher: You’re effectively a consultancy as well. You’re letting your customers know, and you’re setting expectations for them. 

Sean Tilley: Yes, trying to. There’s no perfect setting of expectations. It’s aspirational. You can only try to get people to do what you want them to do. I have three and five-year-old boys, and they’re an absolute test of patience. 

Future Plans and Expansions 

OU Kosher: Just in terms of the horizon, do you have any future plans for more acquisitions or new technology? 

Sean Tilley: Yes, we’re always looking to optimize our product line. We’re looking for ingredients and chemistries that are ahead of or in the new trends where we see sustainable demand. We have an operation in the UK, and we’ll be opening our own company-operated distribution center in Poland before the end of the year. That’s an expansion to address Brexit, and then we’ll look to expand. 

Most of our company-operated distribution centers are on the East Coast of the US. We’ll look to expand either through M&A or operational expansion in the US further west in the next year and the years beyond. We’re looking to grow but grow in the markets we serve and stay true to that service model where we’re aligned to the right customers and the right producer partners. 

Managing Data and Logistics Across Global Operations 

OU Kosher: How do you manage data and logistics across your global operations? 

Sean Tilley: We do; we have a lot of redundancies built in. We typically have two or three sources per key product when and where it’s available. There might be a primary producer partner that drives 80% of the volume, but we have to make sure we have some redundancy built in because there is a lot of turmoil and chaos and just unforeseen events in the world every month and year. 

We spent a lot of hours unwinding our ERP systems and getting a master data structure and a single ERP provider, which we’re just about complete on. We’ve put together a supply chain inventory operations planning team to manage through how we plan our inventory, tie it back to customer demand, make sure we’re stocking the right things in the right places, and then make sure we’re getting good demand signals from our customers. 

Key Takeaways for Customers 

OU Kosher: What’s the one thing you want your customers to know about working with you? 

Sean: I think if we were to get engaged with a new client, it’s understanding each other’s capabilities and limitations. Then it’s on us to really manage the logistics and the supply to reduce the customer’s constraints, whatever they might be. 

We want to deliver some sort of value to the client beyond just here’s a price and availability. We want to be entrenched and be part of their production and supply and whether that’s from a source overseas to handling all the freight logistics tariffs duties to their door or it’s a regular product line that we always stock and we manage. 

But we really want to be part of their operations team, with their production team, with their quality team to deliver a very reliable, quality-centric supply chain. They have to be in the position, and they also have to be willing to do it. 

OU Kosher: Well, thank you, Sean, for sharing your insights. And Rabbi Jenkins, thank you for your kosher expertise. Sean, you have an impressively large and multifaceted operation. Kudos to you for keeping it all going. 

Sean: Thank you. 

https://www.tilleydistribution.com/