A family business built on service
From Humble Beginnings
Nearly 30 Years of Ocean King
Ocean King began in 1997 as a one-man seafood delivery service.
Today, we are a nationwide foodservice wholesaler, supplying restaurants and caterers across the UK with fresh and frozen products.
While the business has grown, our approach hasn’t changed —
personal service, reliable delivery, and consistency our customers can depend on.
As we’ve scaled, so has our infrastructure. From our early days in Loughborough, we now operate from a £5 million, purpose-built facility in Derby — designed to support long-term growth and deliver at scale.
Years Experience
Our Story
From refugee roots to a national business
Ocean King’s story starts long before 1997.
It begins with a family forced to leave Vietnam — in search of opportunity, stability, and a future that wasn’t possible at home.
Arriving in the UK with nothing, everything had to be rebuilt from the ground up.
That experience shaped who we are.
Company statement
Creating opportunities. Enriching lives.
This is our company statement.
It’s not marketing. It’s lived experience.
We come from a place where opportunity was limited — and where enriching lives was not a reality.
The UK gave us that chance.
So everything we do is driven by a simple question:
what can we do to make someone better by walking through the doors of Ocean King?
That applies to our team, our customers, and the wider community.
Built from the ground up
Founded in 1997, Ocean King began as a small family business.
Long days. Seven days a week. Doing whatever it took to serve customers properly.
No shortcuts. No outside backing. Just consistency, discipline, and trust.
Nearly 30 years on, we’ve grown into a nationwide foodservice supplier — without losing those values.
What we do
We are a UK Foodservice sector supplier
We supply seafood, meat, poultry, Asian vegetables, dry goods and kitchen essentials to the UK foodservice sector.
Our customers range from independent restaurants to large-scale contract caterers.
The focus is simple:
deliver quality, stay reliable, and make kitchens run better.
A step forward
Our move to Derby marks a major step in our growth.
A £5 million investment into a purpose-built facility designed for scale, efficiency and long-term capability.
At the heart of the site is one of the tallest frozen storage systems in the Midlands — allowing us to hold more stock, improve operational flow, and deliver with greater consistency.
Accreditations
We are SALSA accredited
Our food safety, traceability and operational standards are independently audited and verified.
For our customers, that means confidence — every time they order.
More than a warehouse
This isn’t just a distribution centre.
It’s a business hub — built for collaboration, development and growth.
The site includes a dedicated wellbeing space for our team, reflecting a simple belief:
strong businesses are built on strong people.
Still a family business
We’ve grown. We’ve invested. We’ve scaled.
But the core hasn’t changed.
We are still a family business built on service — focused on doing things properly, and building something that lasts.
Our 5 Core Values
People Focus
Us Before Me
Do It Right
Be Your Best
Own It
Our Team
Meet the Ocean King family below
Steven Thai
Managing Director
John Thai
Director Business Support
Norman Thai
Director of Operations