The owner of a popular South Liverpool cake shop is hoping to land a life changing contract when he appears on Channel 4’s Aldi’s Christmas Secrets next week.

The programme sees British suppliers put festive foodie creations to managing director of buying at Aldi UK, Julie Ashfield, and communications director at Aldi UK, Richard Thornton, for the chance to earn a spot for their dessert on the supermarket’s shelves this Christmas.

Dre Carrington, who is the mastermind behind Penny Lane bakery, Desserts by Dre, which he opened in 2022, will present the Aldi team with a festive take on his speciality dessert, Christmas Pudding Cheesecake.

In addition to his cake shop, Dre sells his creations both wholesale and online, but says the scale of an order from a big supermarket would change everything: “Not only would it be the most incredible and life changing opportunity to have a product I created available in stores throughout the country, but it would also be an honour knowing people are having my dessert at one of the most special times of the year, where food is so important!”

Other hopefuls include Wigston Deli, who pitch Pigs in Blankets Samosas; a festive themed steamed pudding from Worcestershire based The Pudding Shop, and Pigs in Blankets Ice Cream from Yorkshire dairy farm Yorvale.

Julie Ashfield adds: “With so many of our existing suppliers coming up with great Christmas products, we really only have space for one more within our seasonal range.

“We absolutely have to stand out from the crowd at Christmas and new, quirky products are key to this.”

The new Channel 4 show also follows the Aldi as it prepares for Christmas, with a behind-the-scenes look at current suppliers, in-store operations, and the launch of the nation’s first ever bottomless Pigs in Blankets restaurant.

Aldi’s Christmas Secrets airs on Channel 4, Monday 18 December at 9pm.

The winning Christmas product will land in stores as a Specialbuy from Tuesday 19 December.

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