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London coffee and wine bar operator Notes set for expansion

Published:  15 January, 2015

London coffee and wine bar operator Notes is to opening three outlets in 2015, and plans to continue expanding at a rate of two to three sites per year from 2016.

The group is focused on artisanal coffee - it even has its own roaster - but after looking to maximise evening trade wine now makes up 30% of sales.

NotesNotes set for further expansion

By May of this year it will have five sites - it currently operates three, but one is relocating to Kings Cross. It also operates four coffee barrows. The new outlets are at St Pancras Square and two in Canary Wharf, while the existing sites are located at St Martin's Lane and City Point.

For the next few years it is focused on central London, but Halfon says it may look to start spreading out to the capital's more residential areas after that.

Director Ed Halfon told Harpers.co.uk: "We started off as a coffee and music concept - we took over a music store - but when the music element dwindled, we saw an opportunity to make more of the evening trade, so added wine to the mix."

The St Martin's Lane site, located next to the English National Opera in a "heritage-filled" building, lent itself well to a wine offer.

The firm seeks out wines with "interesting stories" and uses a range of suppliers, "aiming not to be priced too high".

By the glass sales start at £5 and go up to £6.80, while bottle prices starting around £20, with the most expensive being around £55.

Initially the brand recruited consultant Peter McCombie MW to help develop the list and find the right suppliers, but now they manage it themselves. The list comprises 60 wines, including Prosecco and Champagne, and sales are divided equally between glass and bottle.

Overall wine accounts for 30% of sales, with Halfon saying "it's a very significant part of our business". "It's a big part of who we are and a big differentiator". It has also just started to offer cocktails and stocks craft beers.

As for obtaining licences in London, sometimes a tricky business for operators, Halfon says it "has not struggled so far".

"Coffee and wine works well for us, but it's something you have to build. You don't want too many mixed messages. It's possible to have a different atmosphere by day and night and to change the mood and have table service instead of counter. But you can't do it in every coffee shop," he stressed.

Its wines are available from lunchtime, with most sales taking place in the evening and it also sells wine off-trade.

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