Northern Ireland coffee chain reaches huge milestone by opening its 30th store and creating 25 jobs

Northern Ireland coffee chain Bob & Berts has opened a new store in Strabane, the company’s first new store opening of 2024 and its 30th overall.

In a first of its kind for Bob & Berts, the store at Strabane’s Pavilion Retail Park, is the first time the brand has chosen to set up in an out of town retail park location.

Founded in Portstewart in 2013 by Colin McClean, Bob & Berts is known for its distinctive style, quality coffee and fresh food offering and its community focused approach.

Creating over 25 full and part time jobs for the local area, Bob & Berts in Strabane has been set up in a 3,500 sq ft unit. With capacity for 110 internal covers and 10 outside seats the new store will serve shoppers visiting the retail park between the hours of 8am and 9pm seven days a week.

BGF, the most active investor in small and mid-sized businesses in the UK and Ireland, invested £2 million into Bob & Berts in 2017 with the aim of helping it to accelerate the roll-out of new stores and reach new geographical locations.

Following the opening of a new store in Ann Street, Belfast in December 2023, the new Strabane unit marks the 30th store in the company’s growing portfolio. Bob & Berts now has 17 stores in Northern Ireland, six in Scotland and seven in the north of England.

Colin McClean, founder of Bob & Berts, said: “Opening our 30th store and our first out of town retail park location has been a huge achievement for Bob & Berts. We have always wanted to move into the out of town retail park market. When the opportunity arose in Pavilion Retail Park it fitted our profile and size requirements, and we knew there was an opportunity to meet the needs of the community and provide a relaxed environment with affordable food and drink.

“Short term our goal is to double over the next 3 years to become a 70-site business, with the longer-term ambition to be a 100-site brand across the UK. We continue to look for opportunities across Northern Ireland, but our focus is now firmly in England.”

David Ferguson, co-owner of Bob & Berts: “Bob & Berts has positioned itself as a leader amongst independent coffee chains, constantly adapting to the market and investing in new locations and stores across Great Britain and Northern Ireland. The move into the out of town retail park market is a new area for growth, not yet tapped into by Bob & Berts and we look forward to seeing the potential of this new market.”