Be At One doubles up

Be At One has announced plans to double its number of venues by the time of the London 2012 Olympics after reporting record sales for December 2010.

The cocktail bar chain saw takings rise by 22% on December 2009 to £834,952. The company, which has 10 sites across London, also saw like-for-like sales grow 11.1% to £762,422.

Be At One attributed this success to Londoners defying the snow, the extension of licensing hours and drinkers embracing its 10 winter cocktails offer.

Founded by a trio of ex-bartenders, Be At One’s employees undergo an 8 week training programme before serving the cocktails.

In contrast to major on-trade firms, such as Punch Taverns and Mitchells & Butlers, Be At One has pursued a deliberate wet-led strategy.

Rhys Oldfield, co-founder of Be At One, is confident of their successful formula: “This result underlines that our strategy of delivering consistently great cocktails, excellent service and classic tunes is as relevant now as ever.”

Building on this success, a refurbishment programme is already underway beginning with its Putney site. A further two openings are due before the end of March and another five sites are scheduled to open this year.

Laura Pullman 11.01.2011