Raymond Blanc's Heartwood Collection has secured £100m of additional funding

The Staff Canteen

Editor

Raymond Blanc and Mark Derry's hospitality and pub group, Heartwood Collection, has secured an additional £100m in funding to support its expansion plans.

The company, founded by Le Manoir Aux Quat’Saisons' two Michelin-starred chef patron Raymond Blanc and Brasserie Blanc's Mark Derry, aims to increase its portfolio to over 60 pubs and nearly 500 rooms by June 2027.

The funding will be used to acquire both freehold pubs and pubs with rooms throughout the UK over the next four years.

The investment includes a £50m banking facility from OakNorth Bank and £50m from Alchemy Partners, which acquired the business in 2022.

We are so excited to reveal that Brasserie Bar Company becomes Heartwood Collection, a new name which reflects our ambitious growth strategy to evolve into a freehold premium pub company with rooms and a premium brasserie division.
— Heartwood Collection (@_hwcollection) June 15, 2023

Heartwood Collection also expects to receive an additional £50m investment to further strengthen its growth initiatives.

The group has reported strong recent trading performance and has successfully acquired 11 freehold sites over the past year. It has plans for an additional five acquisitions over the summer.

With the new funding, the company aims to develop 500 boutique bedrooms, which will increase its total workforce to 2,700 employees.

Richard Ferrier, the managing director of Heartwood Collection, expressed his gratitude for the additional support from OakNorth and Alchemy, emphasising that it reflects the strength of the business and its growth potential.

He stated that the funding will enable the company to continue building on its current success and establish Heartwood Collection as the leading premium pubs and pubs-with-rooms business in the UK.

Commenting on this story, Mark expressed confidence in the company's prospects, noting that their combination of skilled chefs, warm hospitality, and unique pub atmosphere positions them well in an underserved market.

Heartwood Collection as formerly known as Brasserie Bar Co and currently operates over 30 sites across the UK under the White Brasserie Company and Brasserie Blanc brands.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Heartwood Collection (@heartwoodcollection)

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.