Bistrot Pierre, the highly-rated French restaurant chain, has lined up three new openings for 2015 in Bath, Birmingham and Newport.
M&C Report has learnt that the 12-strong group, which is led by Robert Beacham and John Whithead, has secured Jika Jika coffee house & canteen site in Bath’s George Street for an opening next March.
The company will follow this with the opening of a Gas Street Basin site in Birmingham next summer and then with a unit at the Friars Walk development in Newport in November.
The group said that the openings would enable it to capitalise on its “strong brand recognition and steady growth within the premium casual dining sector”.
Beacham said: “2014 has been a great year for us. With our Cardiff bistrot opened we focused our attention on the Abbey Sands development in Torquay and opened there in September. To now be able to announce three new openings for next year is a great culmination to 2014.”
The fit out of the Bath site is expected to cost around £700K and will be designed by Devon based architects Gillespie Yunnie, who have been instrumental in the group’s openings in Plymouth, Cardiff and Torquay.
“Bath has been in our sights for some timem” said Beacham. “It is an elegant city that enjoys a rich heritage, yet relishes a cultural diversity, and will be a comfortable fit for our brand ethos of good service, quality surroundings and enjoyable atmosphere. To have found such a perfect spot in the city centre is a dream come true.”
The Birmingham bistrot will be located on Gas Street within a historic toll house backing onto the Birmingham canal and Newport the group’s first site within a shopping centre.
Beacham said: “Each of our bistrots is styled to complement the building it is in” he continues “and whilst our look changes between them, customers can expect the same attentive service and high quality French cookery every day. We’ve spent years creating a restaurant brand that is firmly focused on great value French dining and good food and are proud that this combination has proved to be the right mix and that it has enabled us to get where we are today.”
Last year, the company secured £4m of funding through Natwest to double its presence over the next four years and is believed to be looking for sites in Leeds, Manchester, Newcastle, Milton Keynes, Bristol and Taunton.
Martin Bloom at Insight Retail acted on the Bathb deal.
