Being transparent is a big part of how bring we our neighbourhood into our business.
We’re all about being that relaxed neighbourhood bar where you won’t be judged if you start with a Guinness and having physical doors to welcome neighbours through is priceless. We know their faces and they know our faces. That’s what it’s all about: using what we’re doing to give our neighbourhood something that wasn’t here before and that makes us so much more than just a bottle on a shelf.
Tours also form a backbone of how we outreach to both local businesses and customers for people to gain a better understanding of what we actually do here. Being transparent (and quite literally having our stills sitting behind our bar) is a big part of how bring we our neighbourhood into our business and I like to think it’s a big part of what keeps them coming back.
Whether it’s how we look or how we sound, we’ve dug deep to make sure that the new East London Liquor is all about celebrating our little corner of town.
We make gin not margins
Our north star has always been to make great spirits that don’t cost the earth. We get so fed up with seeing brands hike their prices because they’re using a fancy bottle or textured label. Instead, just like our local community, we do what we say on the tin – “Decent booze, for decent people, at decent prices.” I don’t think you can underestimate the value that sharing the same perspective as your neighbourhood can have on your neighbourhood.
Project refill
Being able to physically host and serve our neighbours in our home means we benefit from picking up the kinds of things they want and stand for.
We know that our local community care about the place and planet that they live in, which is why they gave us the confidence to launch an onsite scheme where we offer refills of our East London Gin, Vodka and Rum in empty spirits bottles by other brands. It doesn’t cost less, but it’s a better way to buy ‘more stuff’ and our locals love that we’ve listened to what’s important and given them a chance to make the right choice.
Being able to physically host and serve our neighbours in our home means we benefit from picking up the kinds of things they want and stand for. It inspires a lot of the ideas the team come up with, and Project Refill is just one of them.