Brown joins the London-based specialty coffee group from boutique bakery-café chain Gail’s, having also led coffee programmes at Harris+Hoole and Patisserie Valerie
Josh Brown and WatchHouse’s Hampstead Heath outlet, London | Photo credit: LinkedIn/James Retief
UK-based specialty coffee group WatchHouse has appointed Josh Brown as its new Head of Coffee.
Brown joins London-based WatchHouse from boutique bakery-café chain Gail’s, where he joined as Interim Head of Coffee from May 2022 before taking on the new role of Head of Coffee Business Development in October 2023.
He previously held Head of Coffee Operations and Head of Coffee and Commercial Development roles at Caffè Nero-owned Harris + Hoole, and also led the coffee programme at Patisserie Valerie and Bakers + Baristas.
Brown succeeds Ryan Garrick as WatchHouse’s Head of Coffee. Garrick, who held the position for over six years, joined Colombian specialty coffee exporter CATA Export in July 2024.
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Founded in 2014, WatchHouse has become one of the UK’s most celebrated specialty coffee businesses, operating 19 outlets alongside a single site in New York – the brand’s first international location.
In December 2023, WatchHouse completed a £7.9m ($10m) funding round to scale its UK and US store footprint before raising a further £7.2m ($9m) in a crowdfunding campaign the following May.