OREANDA-NEWS. Grind, the independent coffee and cocktail group behind Shoreditch Grind, Soho Grind, Holborn Grind and London Grind, today launches a bond issue via crowdfunding platform Crowdcube, seeking £1.5m investment to fund expansion in the UK and take control of its supply chain.

Founded four years ago by young entrepreneur David Abrahamovitch and musician Kaz James, Shoreditch Grind was designed to bring to London a coffee experience of the quality that could be found in Kaz's hometown, Melbourne.

Shoreditch Grind grew quickly in scale and reputation, and established itself at the forefront of London's "third-wave" coffee boom. Following investment from John Ayton - best known for having founded jewellery brand Links of London - and Diarmid Ogilvy - a seasoned private equity professional - Grind expanded, opening Soho Grind, with a basement cocktail bar, Holborn Grind, at The new Hoxton Hotel, and the flagship London Grind, the first site with a full restaurant.

Grind today comprises of four beautiful spaces for eating, meeting and drinking, proudly serving the best coffee in London. A fifth site in Covent Garden is set to open this summer.

To help propel its growth, Grind is looking to the Crowdcube investment platform to help finance the opening of a state-of-the-art roastery, which will enable it to in-source its custom blend.

The roastery development, which will be based in east London, will also house a central kitchen servicing all current sites, as well as a sixth Grind coffee shop, cocktail bar and restaurant. Roasting its own coffee will give Grind greater control, improve margins and open up further wholesale and retail opportunities.

The 'Grind Bond' issue will allow investors to put their money where their mouths are - literally - and share in the success of one of the UK's most dynamic new businesses.

The mini-bond will offer investors an 8 per cent annual interest rate paid quarterly over four years. Additionally, every investor will be rewarded with a special 'Investor Card' loaded with complimentary coffees and cocktails, and any investment above ?5,000 will receive free coffees and cocktails for the lifetime of the bond, plus an invite to a commemorative Bond party. Those investing more than ?10,000 will get free coffees or cocktails every week, and those investing in excess of ?25,000 will be awarded with one of the hallowed, money-can't-buy Grind 'Red Cards', usually reserved for famous faces, that entitles you to a free coffee or cocktail every single day for the lifetime of the bond.

Along with a wealth of in-store activities, the fundraising campaign is also to be the focus for a major outdoor ad campaign aimed at London's business commuters.

Grind founder and CEO David Abrahamovitch said:"Since that first day in 2011, it's been the support of our customers that has driven us to where we are today, and we knew we had to allow them to fund our next stage of growth. Grind has always been about doing things our own way, and a little differently, and this fresh, democratic approach to fundraising really resonated with us."

Luke Lang, co-founder of Crowdcube commented:"Grind already has four sites in prime locations across London, so it's great that its existing customers and advocates can be part of the company's future plans to expand across the UK. Businesses from the food and beverage sector are usually very popular with our crowd of 175,000 investors, so we're pleased to be able to offer people the opportunity to invest in the Grind Bond."

About Grind

The first of the Grinds, Shoreditch Grind, was born when Londoner David enlisted his friend Kaz, a Melbourne DJ with a passion for coffee, to help turn his father's mobile phone shop, a stand-alone perfectly circular building perched on the edge of Old Street Roundabout, into an espresso bar. 

Kaz had badly missed the taste of the Melbourne caf?s he'd grown up with, and was determined to re-create the taste of home. Unsatisfied with anything available in London at the time, the pair worked for months to develop a custom blend, and eventually, the Grind House Espresso Blend was born. 

Shoreditch Grind is now one of the busiest, most recognisable caf?s in London. Later, the pair added a recording studio upstairs, and started opening later, serving espresso martinis and other cocktails late into the night.

Subsequent branches followed in 2014 - Soho Grind on Beak Street, Soho and Holborn Grind, part of the Hoxton Hotel, Holborn, and in 2015 London Grind - a London Bridge flagship boasting a full restaurant. The fifth Grind opens in Covent Garden this summer.