A former electrician has connected to a new career.

Craig Smith runs two businesses – Kahuna Huts Ltd and Kahuna Catering – from premises at Linthwaite.

The first manufactures and supplies special food stalls and accessories to operators at venues such as markets and sports stadiums.

The second provides a specialist street food catering service for festivals and fairs, weddings, birthdays and corporate events.

Kahuna Huts Ltd has supplied organisations including Chelsea FC, Somerset County Cricket Club and Coventry’s Ricoh Arena.

Craig worked as a self-employed electrician for nine years before public sector cuts meant a loss of contracts.

He was unemployed ror six months before deciding to set up his own food stall at markets in his native Liverpool.

He said: “My stall was getting better and busier. At the same time, other people wanted to buy my huts.

“The number of huts we make has been building up in the last few years with new customer coming on board.”

Craig, who works with colleague Laura Crosfield, has also taken on an employee, who had previously been on work experience with the company.

Materials for the huts, including timber and steel, are supplied by local firms and all the fabrication is done in-house. The product range has also increased to include food carts and catering trailers.

The firm also supplies accessories such as hotplates, water boilers, potato ovens, pie cabinets and salad bars as well as signs, banners, flags and fliers to make anyone’s food business stand out from the crowd.

Said Craig: “Huddersfield is the perfect place for us. I had a spot for my own catering stall at Nelson Mandela Corner for some time, which went really well. We also do good trade at the Saturday market.”

Craig has hired out his catering huts to clients in Ireland and Portugal – with the structures particualrly in demand for Christmas markets. The company also provides cooking equipment and culinary training. “We’re not just a manufacturer,” said Criag. That’s our USP.”

Craig is now planning a Big Kahuna Street Food Market to take place from 9am to 6pm on Saturday, July 26, at Nelson Mandela Corner behind the library in Huddersfield town centre with a range of huts selling a wide variety of hot food.

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