UK’s The Gentlemen Baristas bought out of administration for £785,000

The Gentlemen Baristas’ 12,000sq ft roastery in Stratford, London, opened in March 2023 | Photo credit: Gregory Hayes

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London’s The Gentlemen Baristas has been acquired out of administration for £785,000 ($998,822) by an unnamed buyer, a Companies House filing shows.
 
The specialty coffee business entered administration in January 2024 and continued to trade from four coffee shops and its east London roastery. The terms of the deal include the assets and leasehold premises for The Gentlemen Baristas’ roastery and London Bridge store, leaving the future of the business’ eight remaining coffee shops uncertain.
 
Founded by Henry Ayers and Ed Parkes in 2014, The Gentlemen Baristas began trading from a single coffee shop in Borough, London. The business received £835,000 investment from QOOT International Limited to launch its own roastery in 2018 and by 2022 had grown to 11 coffee shops in London alongside robust wholesale and direct-to-consumer channels.
 
In March 2023 The Gentlemen Baristas opened a larger 12,000sq ft roastery in Stratford to meet growing demand for specialty coffee in the UK capital – but soon after indicated that higher materials, sales and staff costs were adversely impacting its retail business.
 
World Coffee Portal’s Project Café UK 2024 report identified that while many UK coffee businesses are trading strongly, a tough economic backdrop characterised by weakened consumer confidence and high costs has led many operators to scale back expansion or close underperforming sites.