Tantalizers signs five year multi-million export deal with U.S. seafood importer

Tantalizers Plc has signed a five-year export agreement with Harvester Fisheries LLC, a U.S.-based seafood importer and distributor. Through the deal, Tantalizers and its subsidiary, Tantalizers Fisheries Limited, will supply agreed annual volumes of wild-caught tiger prawns and pure shrimps to the North American buyer.

The multi-million-dollar contract marks the company’s entry into international seafood trade. Exports will run through its Free Trade Zone-based unit, which manages trawling, processing, and packaging for overseas distribution.

Group Managing Director Robert Speijer said the partnership “marks a milestone in our diversification strategy and underscores Tantalizers’ evolution from a quick-service restaurant brand into a global food, retail, and entertainment group with a strong export footprint.”

Harvester Fisheries, based in New Bedford, Massachusetts, one of America’s largest fishing ports, supplies major retailers and restaurant chains across North America. The company said it was confident in Tantalizers Fisheries’ capacity and adherence to international food-safety standards.

Analysts estimate the global seafood market at around $262 billion in 2025, a scale that frames Tantalizers’ pivot from domestic dining to global supply chains.

The agreement deepens a transformation that began in late 2024, when Tantalizers started steering away from its loss-making restaurant business. By expanding into seafood logistics and entertainment, the group cut losses tenfold: from ₦265 million ($181,869,300) in 2024 to ₦25.8 million ($17,700) in the first half of 2025, even as revenue gaps remain.

That seafood shift started with the acquisition of DanBethel Marine Services Limited, which gave Tantalizers control of a trawler fleet and access to Nigeria’s $1 billion seafood import gap. The new U.S. export deal extends that play beyond local supply into global markets.

At the same time, the company’s entertainment arm—built around its 2025 acquisition of Grand Media Projects from filmmaker Tade Ogidan—positions Tantalizers at the intersection of food, culture, and content. Fisheries and media now anchor its non-restaurant growth plan.

By linking with Harvester Fisheries, Tantalizers aligns with Nigeria’s broader push for non-oil exports and blue-economy growth. The coming years will test whether this multi-sector strategy can turn short-term recovery into lasting profitability.