Gary Usher secures site for his third venture, Hispi

The Staff Canteen

Chef Gary Usher has put down a deposit on the Jam and I site in Didsbury, South Manchester for his bistro restaurant, Hispi.

After successfully opening Burnt Truffle through crowdfunding in 2014 Gary decided to crowdfund for his third restaurant, Hispi earlier this year which was originally planned for Chorlton. However, after raising over £58, 000, recruiting staff and setting up a website, the original venue in Chorlton fell through.

Gary Usher
Gary Usher

On talking to the Staff Canteen Gary said: “We crowdfunded this site and it was successful but it fell through. These things happen, it’s like buying a house, a lot of these things you’re not in control of.”

On hearing the news Gary scoured the area for another site in the same area but after visiting 20 different venues he found the perfect setting in the neighbouring village of Disbury, a mere six minute drive from Chorlton.

Gary said: “I went into panic alert and started making appointments in every single place possible in Chorlton in the same area. I saw probably over 20 restaurant sites including ones that weren’t even on the market but there was nothing suitable so I widened the perimeter and started looking a bit out of Chorlton.

“The next decent place after Chorlton is Didsbury and its six/seven/eight minutes in the car, it’s no distance at all.”

Not realising the hostility between the two villages Gary feared a backlash from his backers and took to his Kickstarter page to keep everyone in the loop and to give thanks to those still supporting him. Despite the odd negative comment Gary was amazed by the encouragement he received which gave him more confidence in the project.

He said: “In all honesty I got about 3% of the people say I wouldn’t have crowdfunded if I had known it was Didsbury. It did get me down and I did start to feel negative about the whole project but the support was unbelievable. I honestly got over 30 emails about it saying what you’re doing is amazing, believe in yourself, we all believe in you and don’t worry about the select few that are saying they are unhappy.

“That gave me a bit more confidence to continue.”

Writing on his Kickstarter page, Gary confirmed the new site for Hispi and thanked them for their support.

It reads: “For those of you who are still on board - thank you so much once again for making Hispi now become a reality. I guess (hope!) the next Kickstarter update will be key day!!”

Hispi is the latest project to be crowdfunded by Gary Usher who last year successfully crowdfunded for Burnt Truffle to open in Heswall. Gary also launched Sticky Walnut back in 2011.

 

In these challenging times…

The Staff Canteen team are taking a different approach to keeping our website independent and delivering content free from commercial influence. Our Editorial team have a critical role to play in informing and supporting our audience in a balanced way. We would never put up a paywall and restrict access – The Staff Canteen is open to all and we want to keep bringing you the content you want; more from younger chefs, more on mental health, more tips and industry knowledge, more recipes and more videos. We need your support right now, more than ever, to keep The Staff Canteen active. Without your financial contributions this would not be possible.

Over the last 12 years, The Staff Canteen has built what has become the go-to platform for chefs and hospitality professionals. As members and visitors, your daily support has made The Staff Canteen what it is today. Our features and videos from the world’s biggest name chefs are something we are proud of. We have over 500,000 followers across Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube and other social channels, each connecting with chefs across the world. Our editorial and social media team are creating and delivering engaging content every day, to support you and the whole sector - we want to do more for you.

A single coffee is more than £2, a beer is £4.50 and a large glass of wine can be £6 or more.

Support The Staff Canteen from as little as £1 today. Thank you.

The Staff Canteen

The Staff Canteen

Editor 9th June 2016

Gary Usher secures site for his third venture, Hispi