From bras... to burgers

Town centre lingerie shop set to become a fast food restaurant

A business group has put forward plans to turn a historic shop into a gourmet burger restaurant and vape lounge bar.

Julian Silver and his business partners set up The Collection Ashford in the former Merchant Chandler shop last summer, after the building in North Street had stood empty since August 2014.

But now Mr Silver says the retail market for lingerie and adult toys is increasingly moving to online shoppers, so now he seeks planning permission to convert the shop into the restaurant and lounge.

He said: “Contrary to popular belief, the retail economy is going negative as opposed to going positive in Ashford. As a group we have always wanted to open a restaurant. This building set an exciting kind of vibe and we need a gourmet burger restaurant in Ashford.

“There was strong interest from chain restaurants, and there is a demand for one, but we decided from a commercial perspective that it is better for us to do it ourselves. We think we can do it differently and better than the chain restaurants have.”

Mr Silver says he has received support from the Arcadia group, which owns the building and is the main landlord.

The burger bar would be set on the downstairs floor, while upstairs he will create a vape lounge with seating, pool tables, pinball machines and a licensed bar to give the night time economy a boost.

Mr Silver said: “Vape is an area of retail which is growing, so we have decided that we wanted to do it bigger and better than everybody else.

“There are some late night take away restaurants at the lower end of the High Street, but we are aiming to do something better than that.

“We think from the entertainment point of view that this fits really well.”

The plan to change the use of the building from retail to restaurant is now open to public consultation and council planning officers aim to write a recommendation report by Friday, July 21.

To view the plans visit the planning section at www.ashford.gov.uk and search for reference 17/00812/AS.

‘We think we can do it differently and better than the chain restaurants’

Pictures: Aidan Barlow FM4793354/ Blueprint Architects/Paul Amos FM4618169 External and interior views of The Collection Ashford in North Street, which could be turned into a burger bar and vape lounge if a planning application succeeds