Award winning independent fine wine and food hall merchants Whitmore & White is set to open a new store in West Kirby in the Wirral.
The new shop located at 3 Banks Road will open at 10am on Saturday, September 10, serving coffee, wine by the glass and a selection of deli-boards and sharing plates.
Whitmore & White’s owner Joe Whittick said he is excited about opening a third shop following the success of the original shop in Heswall, and Frodsham opening just a year later.
“While on holiday in Spain three years ago, my partner Jamie and I fell in love with the informal feel of the local wine merchants and delicatessens,” he said. “They seemed to offer high-end elegance hand-in-hand with simple delicious food in a really welcoming atmosphere. Our dream of opening a continental delicatessen and wine shop began there, and a little over six months later we opened our first shop in Heswall.
“From the outset our aim was to source fantastic wine, food and spirits from across Europe, the UK and locally and we set about finding ways to import the best stuff ourselves. Many of our imported ranges from Spain and Italy are exclusive to Whitmore & White. We also wanted to support local artisan producers and were amazed to find how much superb food and drink is made right here on the Wirral.”
Whitmore and White’s second shop in Frodsham celebrated its first anniversary earlier this year. The food and drink that earnt this store the title of Taste Cheshire’s Best Deli 2016 will all be available for sale in West Kirby. Whitmore & White were also Highly Commended at the Cheshire Life Food & Drink Awards 2016, and they are hoping that their award winning formula will be successful in West Kirby.
Mr Whittick said the premises on Banks Road will be different to existing stores. Customers will be able to sit in for a coffee, a glass of wine or enjoy beer on tap. To complement the drinks, antipasti, charcuterie and cheese sharing boards will be served throughout the day. Breads, quiches, cakes and confectionery will also be made on site in West Kirby. The new store will also stock more than 300 different wines, 100 spirits, including more than 30 different gins.
“We have always wanted to make more of our own fresh produce,” he said. “But up until now we just haven’t had the space. The West Kirby store has a much bigger kitchen which will allow us to really get stuck in making some fabulous fresh food, not just for West Kirby, but for our other two stores as well.
“Our wine and spirits buyer, Graham, has been with us since we opened in our home town of Heswall in 2014 and is a partner in the business. He has been in the wine trade for more than 16 years, formally with Oddbins and Nicolas; his wealth of knowledge has been key to our success.
“We will have the same extensive range of wines and spirits available in West Kirby as in our other two stores, with some handpicked additions from our new ‘wine guy’ Simon who will be managing the new store.”
“The addition of a wine tasting machine is a new feature to Whitmore & White. Customers wanting to buy wine by the glass or to try before they buy a bottle can choose from the regularly changing wines available from their state of the art dispensing machines.
“Staff at Whitmore & White pride themselves on being knowledgeable, especially when it comes to wine, and are very keen to pass on their enthusiasm. We’re definitely not fusty wine bores, but we do love our wine and our food and it is hugely satisfying passing this passion on to our customers.”
For more information, contact Joe Whittick, owner of Whitmore & White 07765 245095 or visit the website www.whitmoreandwhite.co.uk
Notes to editors:
Whitmore & White is an independent food hall and wine merchants based in Heswall on the Wirral. Their first store in Heswall opened in April 2014, with their second opening in Frodsham, Cheshire, in February 2015.