Bistro Marc at the Winter’s pub in Stockport, is a family-run French bistro with a comfortable and relaxed atmosphere. Marc, being from France originally, wanted to bring typical French cuisine with a modern twist to Stockport through a joint venture with the council.
The story
Originally, Marc started off as an architect working out of Paris. However, now chef and owner at Bistro Marc, he has over 5 years industry experience after working for world leading chefs, including former head chef to the French Ambassador in Washington D.C.
Wife Rachel is the backbone of the company, with 30 years’ experience in a wide variety of skills ranging from marketing and PR to project management and event planning. Rachel worked in the World Bank in Brussels for over 20 years, and being fluent in French herself, she ensures French authenticity runs through the entire business.
It is not just Marc and Rachel that have an intriguing backstory. The iconic Grade II building that they are situated in makes it the perfect venue deep into Stockport’s Old Town. “Winter’s” used to be a very famous jewellers shop (with the old mosaic still in front of the door!) with a unique exterior chiming clock mechanism dating back to 1903, which now acts as the centre piece to the second floor of the bistro.
It is safe to say the venue was derelict and needed a lot of work, so as part of Stockport’s £1.8 billion regeneration programme following the National Lottery Heritage fund investment, Stockport Council bought the building thus entering into a joint venture with Bistro Marc.
Marc and Rachel got in contact with JR as they wanted to secure fit out finance in order to kit the bistro out with restaurant furniture and kitchen equipment, along with a finance loan to help with business costs. It wasn’t a case of not having the funds available, it was more the benefits they would access by using business finance options. “After speaking with James about how acquiring a loan would help our cash flow, and using leasing would make our equipment non-taxable, the decision was pretty easy after that!”
Bistro Marc has now been up and running for 2 months serving their authentic French cuisine. Marc recently told us they are starting to see booking increases and busy weekend nights in the bistro, and just hosted a BBQ as part of the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee party along the Underbank, which is great to hear!
If your business are looking to buy some new equipment or make an investment, before you dip into your own pocket, let’s look through some options that may be of interest!
