Farewell on East Street
As people say when sharing news like this, it's 'with a heavy heart' that we have decided to close our original store on East Street in the new year. After careful consideration, based purely on business realities, we have opted to activate a lease break available to us in January 2020. Since we opened back in 2015, the craft beer scene has moved in ways we could never imagine - this unpredictability was one of the main reasons we were drawn to it in the first place. Overall the outcome is extremely positive in that better quality beer is now available much more widely, which is fantastic from a consumer perspective. Unfortunately some specialist independent places are proving collateral damage to that movement, coupled with the general state of affairs on the high street, which will come as no surprise is not having its finest moment! However, we’ll not wallow but instead celebrate 5 wonderful years of great beer and the good people we’ve shared them with. We’ll be spending our last Christmas here by doing what we know best; peddling the finest brews we can find and sharing samples with any shoppers who stop by. We’d love to see you, so pop in for a final xmas haul, grab some gifts and cheers one last beer from the taps before we shut the door to number 7 East Street.
What's Next?
It may be super cliché, but for us, rather than the end, this is a new beginning - it’s not like we’ve ever been ones to sit still for a single minute! We’ve already taken a step towards creating fresh AF new brews with our Next Level project. We’re currently crowdfunding for the kit to help us make that happen with 50 supporters already backing the concept. We would like to thank everybody that helped us start this journey; our amazing customers, quality suppliers and passionate staff. We will continue in a retail capacity through our online webshop and bottleshop / bar at Hove, but focus will now shift further towards our bar and brewing operations. It goes without saying that we are incredibly excited about our future in this awesome city, where independence is so well supported by the local community.
Questions Questions Questions
Who can I shout at?
It’s not down to any one person or singular thing that we’ve taken this decision. There have been so many massive changes in craft beer and wider country politics that have impacted on East Street and the future is volatile as a result. A number of bottleshops in the UK are closing either by necessity or choice, including the much loved Trafalgar Wines in Brighton. Big beer companies have snapped up many of our original suppliers - Beavertown, Magic Rock, Fourpure - this list goes on, which in turn has sent them into supermarkets and away from the smaller, independent scene.
Where will I get my delicious indie beer now?
Hove will continue to offer off sales from its many fridges on Church Road. We will also look to expand our online operation offering next day delivery and breweries like UnBarred and Arundel have take-outs available. Seven Cellars have a great selection in Seven Dials and the Wine Barrel on Western Road is well worth a look as well as Southover Wines and our pals at Quaff.
But who’s going to fill up my growler?
Hove usually has 6-8 taps of beer to choose from with a live beer list on Untappd. Failing that, take it to any brewery worth its salt and they should see you right.
I’ve got / gifted a voucher
These can be redeemed at the bottleshop & bar in Hove, our North Laine bar or online.
It's been a blast, but we still have a long way to go!
Cheers,
Jack & Nick