Jack Wills to open café and bar in London flagship store

By

Barbara Santamaria

Published
Feb 21, 2019

Jack Wills has teamed up with coffee shop operator Bear to open a café and bar in its Kingly Street flagship store in London and give customers more reasons to visit and spend time in store.

Bear will open a coffee shop and bar serving a selection of sustainably-sourced specialty coffee, fresh bakes, craft beer and cocktail in the shop’s basement. Jack Wills opened the Soho flagship store, which spreads over three floors, in 2010.

Craig Bunting, co-founder of Bear said: “There is a clear correlation between Bear and Jack Wills in terms of style and vision, and the diverse customer range that Jack Wills attracts reflects our own audience. We believe that our brands align perfectly - creating memorable in-store experiences lies at the heart of our collective core values.”

It is unclear whether more Bear cafés will open in Jack Wills stores in the future, but the independent coffee shop operator is planning to launch up to 30 new sites over the next five years.

Many brands have been adding in-store services including coffee shops in a bid to increase customer dwell time, as the longer customers spend in store, the more they are likely to spend. Incorporating these kind of experiences has taken on new importance in the last year as more consumers shop online. Studies have shown that shoppers still prefer the physical shopping experience, and that innovative concepts and services can influence a consumer’s decision to shop in store instead of online.