London cocktail bar chain Be At One has secured £8 million from private equity firm Piper that will fund a nationwide roll-out.

London cocktail bar chain Be At One has secured £8 million from private equity firm Piper that will fund a nationwide roll-out. 

Be At One was founded in 1998 by three former bartenders, Steve Lock, Rhys Oldfield and Leigh Miller, who had earlier worked together at restaurant chain TGI Fridays.

From its first bar in Battersea, the business now runs 12 bars across London and has a turnover of more than £10 million a year.

The funding was made through Piper’s fifth fund, named Piper V, which closed at £107 million, having exceeded the £80 million target, in July this year. The firm has a strong history in leisure chains including founding Pitcher & Piano and assisting the transforming of Las Iguanas into a nationwide restaurant chain. As part of the investment, Be At One has appointed Andrew Stones as operations director and Mark Derry of restaurant chains Loch Fyne and Brasserie Blanc will join as chairman.

Peter Kemp-Welch, of Piper, comments, ‘We have an aggressive roll out programme and believe the Be At One proposition has enormous potential in a wide range of locations.’

Investors in Piper V include the global fund of private equity investment management firm Adams Street Partners, UK-based Wittington Investments, which is a majority stake owner of Associated British Foods, and Carphone Warehouse founder Charles Dunstone.