Follow Leisure, the parent company which owns a range of cafes across Belfast including Slims Healthy Kitchen and Canteen, has bought coffee chain District.
The deal, for an undisclosed sum, sees Follow Leisure take over all four of the company’s outlets based across the city and will double the group’s café footprint.
Under the new ownership, all 30 members of District’s staff will be retained across its Ormeau Road, Lisburn Road and Saintfield Road cafes, although the company anticipates closing the Stranmillis café once its lease runs out later this year.
“The acquisition of the multi-venue operator District will complement our growth strategy and enhance our brand portfolio,” Gary McIldowney of Follow Leisure said. “Our plans are to immediately provide an increased and varied food offering with a strong focus on an all-day breakfast and brunch menu. We’re excited to welcome all District staff to the Follow Leisure group.
He said the chain had bounced back following the Covid-19 pandemic.
“District has demonstrated robust trading in recent months and had a quick rebound following the removal of the COVID-19 pandemic restrictions We view District as having significant future potential in many high footfall locations.
“The brand matches perfectly with the ethos of our other café brands of great coffee, a stand-out food offering and service with a local community-based feel.”
He said District will continue to operate as a standalone brand as part of the wider group which also includes Canteen, Output, Morning Martha and Slim’s Healthy Kitchen. And he expected the continuation of working from home to be a big benefit to the group as a whole.
“Given that many workers continue to work from home and could remain doing so for some time to come, we continue to enhance our delivery offering. Outside of the peak lunch trading period we offer mid-morning, afternoon snacks and coffee where home-based workers look for a treat direct to their desk and this is an area where we see the potential for increased value proposition across our brand portfolio.”
