I've always loved cooking, my idea of fun is developing new recipes, I see it as a challenge, invariably tweaking it until it's perfect, only then do I write it into my recipe bible! 

I started making chilli sauce 8 years ago and wanted to create something that tasted fresh and sumptuous but didn't have a 'gloopy' and manufactured consistency like all the others. Over time, I perfected a balance of flavour and as a family we had it with virtually everything, being so versatile, having a jar of our sauce in the fridge became a 'must have'. I would make it for every occasion such as birthdays or christenings; I would even take a jar to a dinner party instead of a bottle of wine! Gradually an 'appreciation club' developed and it started to reach a wider audience than just friends and family.

I was asked to make more and more over the years and one day, last year Steve, my husband, remarked that I was now making significant amounts of the sauce. It was at this point that 'the light bulb got switched on' and we both thought it could be developed into a business. So we purchased a variety of similar products which were then taste tested by a number of people. Our sauce received an overwhelming top vote from everyone. We organised the paperwork and checks to allow us to make the sauce from home as a business. We contacted a few businesses and restaurants and received a good response, however the distractions of everyday life meant that we found it difficult to gain momentum and the idea was placed on the back burner. Some time went by and our chilli sauce business was never far from my mind.

Our girls started a new school, Westfield in Gosforth. There I met a friend who helped to approach various retail outlets and restaurants gaining favourable responses all round. She contacted Northumbrian landscape artist, Peter Philips, who is currently displaying his art in Bambrough and Alnwick Castle. Amongst other things, Peter has designed covers for Mick Jagger and other rock stars in the sixties. Peter tried the sauce, loved it and said he would help us design the label and branding.

Within 8 weeks we had our product bottled, labelled, bar-coded with all the necessary accreditations and at 16 weeks we've managed to stock two national garden centres, the national trust, most of the local farm shops and deli's in the area together with some top local restaurants. Every organisation that we have approached on a taste test love the flavour and agree it's totally unique. We received the ultimate accolade when Terry Laybourne started to use our sauce in his Fenwicks Cafe 21 restaurant and the two Professional Master Chef finalists, John Calton and David Coulson, also want to use our sauce in their restaurants.

Recently, we have had to move from our home kitchen to our Children's school commercial kitchen to keep pace with the demand. 

It's been hard work however; it's gratifying to know our family recipe is now being enjoyed in thousands of homes. I am so pleased that others are experiencing what I was passionate about for some many years. My dream is that one day people all over the world will enjoy our sauce and share it with their friends and family as it should be. 

Louise