HEIST. Market
Introducing HEIST. Market, St Leonards on Sea. Opening their doors with the support of CHART.
This hot new spot in St. Leonards is cooking up a storm, bringing together a community of local businesses and produce, to welcome and cater for all…all under one roof! With the help of Business Manager Emily Wright, via the CHART* business support program, they have now opened their doors to visitors!
HEIST. Market is a brand new permanent food market-based in central St. Leonards, offering a consortium of food, beer, and coffee, as well as a resident restaurant ‘The Boatyard’. Offering an open space layout with communal tables, HEIST. brings the community together, allowing visitors to sample a variety of local produce for an affordable price. Inclusivity sits at the heart of this venture, meaning whether you are a worker looking for a lunch spot, a family looking for a quick bite to eat, or a couple wanting to grab a morning coffee, there truly is something for everyone.
The beauty of HEIST. is its collaborative nature, pulling together a wealth of knowledge, experience, and skills, and that starts with its founders Kate O’Norum, Ben O’Norum, and Gillie Turner. All based locally, they share decades of experience between them within the market, festival, events, and hospitality industries. From Japanese street food to an exclusive vermouth bar, locally baked goods to a fine dining experience, HEIST. is a seven day a week destination that works for both tourists and locals alike.
Kate O’Norum who alongside Heist is also the Owner of Farmyard and Boatyard restaurants in St. Leonards, told us when discussing the location of HEIST.
“We have been here (St. Leonards on Sea) for three years already and absolutely love it. It’s such a vibrant area with a huge a mix of people, so we felt it would be the perfect place for something like this. We have visited many communal food spaces over the years, and it just felt like it would work well here, bringing people from all walks of life together”
New Beginnings
The building where HEIST. is located, in Norman Road, St. Leonards on Sea, had sat empty for nearly 5 years after its previous tenant HSBC had moved on. A building full of character (and some disused bank vaults) Kate, Ben and Gillie saw a unique opportunity to bring it back to life, including a sweet reference to its previous purpose, in the new name. HEIST.
Kate told us “We loved the idea that a disused building was being taken over by lots of local businesses and creating a space for eating and drinking in the community - and it was, of course, a nod to its history as a bank too! We tried to keep as many of the original features of the bank as we could (the cladding on the Boatyard counter is reused from the walls of the bank manager's office!) and to work with the building's history.”
Local Support
Having been empty for some time, the building needed some significant investment to make it habitable again, so Kate reached out to Let’s Do Business Group to see what help might be available. She was put in touch with Business Manager Emily Wright who through the CHART* local development programme was able to offer 12 hours of free business support to assist her with a funding application for £40,000 (£30,000 Loan and £10,000 grant) for the refit of the space.
*Connecting Hastings and Rother Together (CHART) is a Community-Led Local Development (CLLD) Programme that is tailored to help pre-start and established businesses in Hastings, Sidley and Central Bexhill to grow. The project is part-funded by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and delivered by a team of business and finance experts.
“Emily has been fantastic. From day one she has been invested in it and has understood the vision and how it would help the community””
One big family
With 8 vendors now opening their spaces within HEIST., the trio’s dream has now become a reality. Drinks vendors include Coldbrew Coffee Co and The Three Legs Brewery Co, and the food mix varies from Street food from Wild Dogz, and The Clam, Asian cuisine from Arigato and Homeground Kitchen and fish delicacies from Boatyard restaurant.
“It has all come together so well. We really wanted a nice mix of local businesses, and we have achieved just that. Some of our vendors we had existing relationships with through our other restaurants and others we have picked up along the way, as they had been looking out for a new place to call home.
After the difficulties of the last 18 months, this was a great way for us to all come together and make our businesses viable and push them forward and make them successful.
Working with all the local suppliers and people is amazing, they are so invested in the project and the area, it really feels like a group effort. It’s a lovely feeling, we are all a team, and if there is any issue, we all rally around to support and help each other. ”
What’s next?
Along with a commercial wormery, HEIST. plans to expand its offering further in the coming months. Starting in September there will be a weekly farmers market, where local producers will be invited to take space to sell their goods on a Friday morning. There are also big plans to repurpose the old Bank Vaults into Karaoke rooms, which can be hired by the hour, and sure to provide hours of fun.
But for now, Kate, Ben, and Gillie are simply soaking up the atmosphere and enjoying seeing their vision come to fruition. Kate told us “After all the hard work to get here, it’s lovely just to see people getting together and chatting and enjoying a drink or some food in a relaxed atmosphere. We have already had such a variety of people visiting us, all trying different items from each vendor. It’s so nice to see that collaboration and our idea come to life. We have been so grateful for all the local support we have received already, We are so excited for what comes next”
Set to employ a minimum of 10 staff, Heist is already having a fantastic impact on the local area. The atmosphere is buzzing, with a constant hive of activity which we are sure will only increase as they fulfill their remaining development plans. Let’s Do Business Group has been delighted to be able to support this project, and look forward to seeing what comes next!