Faucet Inn is close to securing sites in Bristol, Manchester, Oslo and Helsinki for its Scandinavian-inspired bar KuPP and is planning a wave of further openings in 2016, M&C has learnt.
Founder and managing director Steve Cox confirmed to M&C that he expected the all-day dining concept to have three of the sites open by the end of the year after exceeding expectations at the debut outlet in Paddington.
He said he was in “very advanced discussions” on a landmark site in the Aker Brygge downtown harbour district of the Norwegian capital and expects to be trading before Christmas. He said the Finnish KuPP, which will also be in a “landmark location”, would probably be on line in the second quarter of 2016.
Cox also said he was in advanced talks on units in two high-profile developments in Bristol and Manchester, which would open this calendar year.
He said: “We have been extremely pleased with what I suppose is the prototype KuPP. Trading has been beyond expectations and feedback has been very strong on both the wet and dry side. We are making a final few tweaks to menu.”
He said the Merchant Square site’s position under the headquarters of Marks & Spencer’s had boosted trade with lunchtimes and after-work drinks the strongest day parts. Good headway has also been made in encouraging trade from other nearby businesses including St Mary’s Hospital.
Cox said there had also been a very positive reaction from the large Scandinavian community in the area and was now working with the Finnish Embassy and the Swedish Chamber of Commerce on hosting events.
The takeout Fika coffee element of the business has been the slowest to take off but Cox said consumers were now finding a taste for the more subtle, filter-based coffee offer typical of Scandinavia.
On the push into Norway and Finland, he said: “The whole region is very compelling. Spend per head on f&b is very strong – about three times what it is in the UK and there is a big tourist market.
“The market is generally either very high end or grab and go. Casual dining seems to have passed them by and we had to explain how it actually works in the UK. There is huge potential for that sector in Scandinavia as no-one is really tapping into it.
“There is a certain amount of trepidation in taking the offer over there but we have always been clear that we are Scandinavian inspired and that we are bringing our own interpretation to it.”
Cox said the company had a very strong pipeline of sites for KuPP in 2016 with negotiations underway on sites in Edinburgh, Exeter, Leeds and two units in central London.
He said: “Our aim would be to have 10 units by the end of 2016 but that all depends on the usual hurdles of licensing and planning.”
