Bob & Berts to open eight new stores in Northern Ireland and Scotland
Ulster Bank provided the seven figure facility for further expansion.
Independent food & coffee shop chain Bob & Berts is set to invest in eight more stores, which is expected to create over 175 new jobs, the company has announced.
After getting funding from Ulster Bank and the continued support of its existing investor BGF, Bob & Berts says it will open five new stores in Northern Ireland and three in Scotland.
Founded in Portstewart in 2013, the management team of Colin McClean and David Ferguson have quickly expanded the business to become a familiar addition to the local high street, operating 20 stores and employing 400 staff.
Bob & Berts entered the Scottish market in October 2018 following the opening of its first store in Falkirk. It has since opened outlets in Dunfermline and Dumfries with plans now in place to open three more in Stirling, Kirkcaldy and Ayr.
Last week, the business opened a new, larger store in Portstewart and will open its new Portrush store in the next few weeks. Cookstown, Newry and Ballymena will be the next towns to get Bob & Berts coffee shops.
Ferguson said that the new funding from Ulster Bank will allow Bob & Berts to continue its roll out in both Scotland and Northern Ireland, as well as to seek opportunities in England over the next 12-18 months.
“We have identified an opportunity to go faster and open more sites than originally planned, and therefore sought additional investment through the banks for the first time. Selecting the correct bank that we felt understood our strategy and ethos was very important, just like during the equity fundraising process, and we felt that Ulster Bank can provide Bob and Berts with this support moving forward,” he said.
The investment forms part of a wider growth strategy to operate 35 stores throughout the UK by 2020.
