Crate Brewery to launch £500,000 crowdfunding campaign to bring Silo to London: London-based Crate Brewery is to launch a £500,000 crowdfunding campaign next month to fund a major refurbishment of its Hackney Wick home that would also see zero-waste Brighton restaurant Silo brought to the capital. Crate’s founders, brothers Tom and Jess Seaton and Neil Hinchley, plan to use the money to carry out major changes to The White Building. The refurbishment will also include a new experimental brewery, an affordable work space, an extended ground-floor bar and a new events space. One of the key outcomes of the crowdfunding campaign will see major changes on the ground floor of The White Building. A pilot brewery will be installed to focus more on small-batch and alternative beers for the taproom. Outside, an amphitheatre-style area will be created overlooking the canal, which has become a focal point of the east London site. Upstairs, the team will develop a restaurant space with the world’s first zero-waste restaurant, Silo, founded by Doug McMaster. As well as Silo, McMaster and the Crate team will work together to ensure “sustainability thrives throughout all areas of The White Building”, including workshops hosted by McMaster in a new space next to the restaurant. The space will also be used for talks on topics such as food, beer, art and culture. Seaton said: “We are excited for this new chapter in the Crate story. The refurbishment of The White Building is going to allow us to really enhance our business and creativity, with sustainability at the forefront. Douglas and Silo joining us is such an integral part of this – we can’t wait to see what the year brings.” Crate began life in 2012 as a small micro-brewery, bar and pizza restaurant.
Bear partners with fashion brand Jack Wills to launch first London site as cafe bar concept plans expansion: Staffordshire-based cafe bar concept Bear has partnered with fashion brand Jack Wills to launch its first site in London. Bear will open within Jack Wills’ flagship store off Carnaby Street, Soho, in the spring. Bear, which operates stores in Derby, Stone and Uttoxeter, brands itself as an “alternative to the traditional coffee house or bar” and harbours ambitions to open up to 30 sites in major cities and market towns in the next five years. The partnership with Jack Wills will see a significant investment in the Soho location, which spans more than 130 square metres. Open daily from 7.30am to 8pm, the venue will serve sustainably sourced speciality coffee, fresh bakes, craft beer and cocktails. Bear co-founder Craig Bunting said: “There is a clear correlation between Bear and Jack Wills in terms of style and vision, while the diverse customer range Jack Wills attracts reflects our own audience. We believe our brands align perfectly.” The collaboration results from a visit by Jack Wills global property director Neil Beaman to Bear’s Derby site early last year. Jack Wills said the move would create a fresh experience in-store to help the brand meet the changes of “modern consumers’ shopping habits and the ever-evolving high street”. Bunting and Michael Thorley founded Bear in 2014, opening a debut site in their home town, Uttoxeter, in 2016.
