A Sussex seaside town has been left divided over fresh plans to open a new Gail’s branch – as the upmarket bakery chain is welcomed by independent businesses but faces a revolt from locals.
Some residents have raised fears that the planned bakery within a conservation area of Worthing, West Sussex, is out of keeping with the historic setting, but local cafés say the town ‘needs all the help it can get’.
Local preservation group the Worthing Society said the ‘illuminated hanging sign’ on the narrow shopping street could be ‘overly dominant’ and ‘set a precedent’.
And while owners of some family-run cafés warned existing local businesses were ‘struggling as it is’ and could lose custom or even be forced to close for good, others say it will ‘bring more people to the street’.
Despite the backlash, Gail’s is going ahead with the refurbishment of the unit, which was previously occupied by Italian restaurant Nonna’s Kitchen and then MasterChef winner Kenny Tutt’s now-defunct restaurant Pitch until it closed in July last year.
People walk along Warwick Street in Worthing, West Sussex, where a Gail’s is set to open soon
Aaron Coleman and Emily Attwood, business partners at tapas restaurant Vudu, are optimistic about the restaurant’s arrival
Local businessman Costa, who runs the Fiordilatte restaurant, also believes the trendy bakery chain will bring much-needed footfall to the town centre
Worthing has a high street adorned with cute pavement cafes and restaurants – but locals say it nevertheless could use a boost in footfall
Local jeweller Jeremy Silverthorne is all for Gail’s, telling MailOnline: ‘Worthing needs all the help it can get’
Local bar manager George Sutherland says the arrival of Gail’s, combined with a recent opening of a Pret a Manger, showed big firms were taking Worthing seriously
The temporary Gail’s frontage tells locals staff will be ‘baking here soon’ – and features a QR code advertising jobs
The outlet is on Warwick Street in Worthing’s South Street Conservation Area (file picture)
Gail’s – which has more than 130 branches in England – is also hiring at least five staff for the new outlet, including a kitchen team member and barista each on £12 per hour; and a head barista, team leader and head baker each on £13 per hour.
It comes after residents of Walthamstow Village in East London campaigned against the chain opening a branch on their high street amid similar concerns for the area.
A Gail’s sign on the front of the vacant shop on Warwick Street in Worthing says: ‘Hello Worthing. We’ll be baking here soon’.
Gail’s chairman Luke Johnson who made millions from pizza
Gail’s chairman Luke Johnson began his career at 18 when he organised parties as an Oxford medical student.
The entrepreneur worked at TV-AM as an assistant to former Conservative MP Jonathan Aitken, who was an investor in the broadcaster, and was also an analyst at investment bank Kleinwort Benson.
But he made his fortune with Pizza Express after buying it with fellow medic Hugh Osmond for £8million in 1983. It grew from 12 outlets to more than 200 and the pair then floated it on the stock exchange 10 years later.
He also co-founded investment firm Intrinsic Value in 1999, and invested in businesses such as Belgo Group, which owned The Ivy and Le Caprice.
Mr Johnson set up Risk Capital Partners in 2001 which owns stakes in a range of businesses including Brighton Pier Group and Gail’s.
He also became the youngest ever chairman of Channel 4 in 2004 and donated money towards the Brexit campaign before the EU referendum.
Mr Johnson spoke out against pandemic restrictions, saying in October 2020 that the country could not afford another lockdown.
And in a column for The Sunday Times in 2019, he said he worried that ‘climate alarmists are unduly pessimistic and anti-business, and that global warming is used by some as a convenient stick with which to beat capitalism for purely political reasons’.
But independent cafe owners expressed fears that the branch may result in local businesses having to close for good.
Tushar Patel, who owns Café Traditionale on Chapel Road in Worthing, told the Daily Telegraph: ‘Allowing more cafes to open will have a knock-on effect on existing businesses.
‘Existing businesses are struggling as it is. Somebody will have to close their doors very soon here. It is frustrating.Â
‘The council should look after the existing businesses by not allowing new cafes to open.’
Another local business owner called Baz, who runs Bites Cafe And Kitchen in the town, estimated that he would lose around two tables a day if Gail’s opened its doors.
He told the newspaper: ‘There are already enough cafes. Nobody can make money, nobody can survive, it’s just becoming that difficult. Nobody seems to be doing well. The council should be managing this before it gets too late.’
But Emily Atwood, 22, and Aaron Coleman 32, who are business partners at the Vudu restaurant, were more positive.
Emily told MailOnline: ‘I’m in favour as it’ll bring more people to the street because it’s a well known business. It is obviously competition but it’ll be friendly competition. They might steal a few costumers, but we’re positive about it.’
And Aaron quipped: ‘We’ll just have to stop selling croissants!’
Many were hopeful that the addition of Gail’s could help increase footfall.
Sav Mela, the owner of G-Lite, a local authentic Italian known for gelato, said: ‘More people coming to the road will bring more business, which is what we need.
‘There is not much foot traffic at the moment. There are often more businesses than people. We are artisan, they are a chain, so we are different.’
And Costa, who runs the family-run Fiordilatte Pizza Restaurant, said:Â ‘I don’t mind that they’re a chain. The opening will bring more people to the street, which we need.’
Plumber Martin Cook, 58, also said it was ‘good for the town’, adding: ‘That place has been empty for a long time.
‘I like Gail’s, it has the best buns and it’s a good treat.’
And Brian Kemp-Potter, 84, who has lived in the area all his life and works for timber merchants Wenban Smith which has been in his family since the 1870s, said:Â ‘Let’s have it, we don’t want empty shops.
‘It’ll bring the town up, it’s what it needs.
‘I would love to see the town to get better, and it’ll be wonderful to have more decent places.’
George Sutherland, the manager of Wenban Smith, said:Â ‘We’ve seen Trading Post and Pret open in the last 6 months which shows big corporations are looking at Worthing more seriously.’
‘Gails is better than Pret, it’s a much smaller company and reasonably priced.’
The 22-year-old added: ‘All the local businesses around here run on returning customers, I’ll never not go to Finch (a local business).’
Jeremy Silverthorne, 56, who runs an independent jewellers with his namesake, said: ‘I’m absolutely in favour, I see no problem with it. Worthing needs all the help it can get.
‘An upmarket brand lifts a town, and more high end companies attract people. It’s like when there’s a majestic in a town, it improves the town.
‘It’s important to support local, I have breakfast at local businesses often. But there’s room for both local and chain brands in Worthing.
‘I hope it’ll work out, but I’m ultimately not sure.’
The Worthing Society responded to the planning application on the Adur and Worthing Councils website following a discussion with the group’s heritage team – and specifically criticised plans for ‘illuminated signage’.
Business partners Sav Mela, Max Piazza and Ben Cocchiarella from the neighbouring G-Lite restaurant – who say Gail’s could bring more foot traffic
Retired businessman Brian Kemp-Potter says the opening of a Gail’s in Worthing is better than leaving an empty unit languishing
The West Sussex seaside town of Worthing – where Gail’s is planning its new branch
Gail’s has submitted plans for the proposed shopfront elevation for its new Worthing branch
Gail’s has submitted a series of drawings to Adur and Worthing Councils for its new branch
Its chair said in a letter: ‘This building is located in Warwick Street, one of the most historic areas in Worthing and set within the South Street Conservation Area.
‘Although not included on the Statutory List or included on the Local List, it is a building of same age and scale within the street scene.
‘Warwick Street is one of the narrowest shopping streets in Worthing. Whilst we can appreciate the need for a hanging sign we consider it does not need to be illuminated.
‘Given the scale of the building, an illuminated sign could be overly dominant and set a precedent.’
The group added that it thought the illuminated sign would breach Section 72 (1) of the Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) Act 1990 because it would not enhance the conservation area.
Gail’s started as a single store in Hampstead, North London, and slowly began to spread across the capital before cherry picking new towns and cities to set up in.
But its rise to prominence has not been welcomed with open arms, as some residents look to fight the gentrification of their towns.
The chain now is seen by many as the successor to Waitrose, with plans now in place for 35 new sites to be opened.
Gail’s already has five bakeries in Sussex – on Seven Dials and North Road in Brighton; Church Road in Hove; Carfax in Horsham and High Street in Lewes.
Earlier this month, Gail’s hit the headlines when residents of gentrified Walthamstow Village launched a fight to stop a branch opening on their high street.
The petitioners said they wanted to protect ‘the unique identity of our community’ by ‘safeguarding the soul of a beloved neighbourhood’.
However, some business owners claimed that local resistance was down to company chairman Luke Johnson, who is said to be pro-Brexit, anti-lockdown and has called climate activists ‘alarmists’.
The Worthing Society responded to the planning application from Gail’s on the Adur and Worthing Councils website following a discussion with the group’s heritage team
The location where Gail’s wants to open its new branch on Warwick Street in Worthing
Some residents said they felt Mr Johnson did not align with the politics of the area, which backed Remain in 2016 and has had a Labour MP for more than 30 years.
During the General Election campaign earlier this year, the Liberal Democrats targeted constituencies where there are Gail’s outlets – believing there were Conservative voters who could be prepared to swing – in a scheme launched by Sir Ed Davey and dubbed ‘Operation Cinnamon Bun’.
Asked about the Worthing outlet, a Gail’s spokesperson told The Telegraph: ‘We understand the concern, but our view is that a healthy high street is one with a diversity of quality offers, each delivering their best.
‘High streets evolve over time, and we open our small bakeries often in closed banks or stranded restaurants.Â
The row in Worthing comes after residents of Walthamstow Village in East London campaigned against Gail’s opening a branch on their high street (pictured on August 19) amid similar fears
A sign featuring a bearded tattooed hipster has emerged on the new Gail’s in Walthamstow
A petition which has been set up to stop Gail’s bakery opening a new store in Walthamstow
‘All of our bakeries exist in areas where the choices are wide and growing – we should be celebrating the improvement in our food landscapes.
‘Bringing our bakery to Worthing, with such a dynamic and thriving food scene, is something we’ve wanted to do for a while.
‘We’re looking forward to having a small footprint in a place that we love and admire, and are excited to fire up our ovens for the Worthing community.’
MailOnline has contacted Adur and Worthing Councils and Gail’s for comment.
