Enjoy a glass of locally brewed craft beer or real ale for a final few afternoons and evenings at the Urban Alchemy bar in the Chipping Work Shop in Barnet High Street before its last day of trading on Sunday 26 March.
A prohibitive demand for business rates is precipitating the closure of what has become a vibrant hub for a range of pop-up businesses.
They are all having to look for new premises after what for many of them have been successful business ventures.
Chipping Barnet Town Team opened the Work Shop last summer transforming the former showrooms of estate agents Foxtons at corner with Moxon Street into a community hub for budding entrepreneurs.
One of the displaced traders is Portobello Road Princess, specialising in clothes, accessories and candles which took space at the workshop last August and has traded there on Tuesdays to Saturdays.
Losing a High Street retail outlet is a devastating blow for New Barnet brewers Urban Alchemy which will now have to scale back to operate bars at fairs and festivals in the hope of better times in 2024.
Simon Marley (above left), who founded Urban Alchemy in 2019, said the closure of the workshop and the loss of their High Street bar – open from Thursday to Sunday -- was part of a perfect storm that will force a pause in the business.
“We have tried and tried again to find a base for a brewery and bar.
“We can’t go on for ever brewing beer in my garden and without a tap room of some sort we can’t sell direct to the public.
“Rents and rates in High Barnet are exorbitant – higher than in Crouch End or Kentish Town – and there is a dearth of premises for light industry and enterprises like ours.”
Simon said the start of the business went so well in late 2019 and early 2020 but then they were hit by the covid emergency and a succession of events such as Putin’s invasion of Ukraine, catastrophic increases in grain and energy prices, and finally the economic mayhem of the Liz Truss budget.
“Despite building up a loyal customer base and regular sales of bottled beers, we’ve just been hit again and again with higher costs.
“In recent months there has been a significant fall-off in trade following the hike in mortgage costs and drop in spending money.”
Raw material prices for malted wheat and barley had doubled in price and coupled with higher energy costs, margins had become ever tighter and the loss of their High Street bar, Urban Alchemy had no alternative but to scale back and hope for an upturn in the economy next year.
Simon and head brewer and barman Matt Javes (above right) hope their final few days of trading will help boost their reserves.
Urban Alchemy is open from 6pm to midnight on Thursdays and Fridays and from 4pm to midnight on Saturdays and Sundays.
For their final days there is a 20 per cent reduction of food orders delivered to the bar by Pizza Treo.
The loss of a stall at the Work Shop is a disappointment for Seyda Tuzunalper (above) who sells table top decorations, candles and home accessories. She has been trading in the High Street since Christmas. This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Another trader on the move is Louise Franco of Portobello Road Princess who is also hoping to find new premises. www.portobelloroadprincess.com
