City Pub EIS fund buys the Garrison from Village London
The City Pub EIS Fund, an investment vehicle launched by pub entrepreneurs Clive Watson, John Roberts and David Bruce, has acquired the Garrison in Bermondsey, London for an undisclosed sum.
The Garrison was part of Village London, which also operates Village East and the Riding House Café in London.
Co-incidentally, Clive Watson who manages the fund, shares the same name with one of Village London's two founders, Clive Watson and Adam White, who won the Pub and Bar Award at the Cateys in 2011.
The Garrison opened in 2003 and offers modern British food and a range of locally brewed beers and ales. The pub also features a private cinema room.
The fund aims to invest £100m over the next three years, in freehold and long leasehold managed pubs in affluent cities and large towns predominately in southern England.
Shelley Sandzer were agents to Village London for the acquisition.
The sale also heralds the departure from Village London of Clive Watson. Adam White will continue in his role as managing director of Village East and Riding House Café. White also plans to open a restaurant and bar within Nova in London's Victoria in 2016, outside of the Village London banner.
Watson, who has not been operationally involved with Village London since 2013, will continue to pursue new projects, including his newly opened all-day brasserie Blixen in Old Spitalfields Market and Our/London, a vodka micro distillery which he is set to open in Hackney this summer.
Clive Watson of the City Pub EIS Fund said: "The Garrison is a fantastic pub with a lot of character and in a great location. It fits exactly with our investment criteria for the fund and is perfectly suited to the local market. In creating the Garrison in 2003, Clive and Adam were early pioneers of high quality pub dining in the local area and they have built a strong reputation. We don't just share the same name but the same values as well."
"We look forward to building on the pub's reputation and growing our portfolio of pubs which offer customers what they want: good atmosphere, local beers and food with provenance delivered by friendly efficient staff."
Watson (of the City Pub EIS Fund), Roberts and Bruce also own and run the City Pub Company, which runs 15 pubs across London. This is a separate entity to the City Pub EIS Fund.
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