Major leisure operator moves into café society

THe vogue for branded café outlets continues with a new 200-strong Italian-style chain planned for early next year.

Leisure group Queensborough Holdings is behind the venture, named Fresco. The format has been created in-house, with input from unnamed consultancies.

“It is modern, urban and Italian in style, using natural woods, tiles, glass and brushed metal,” says Queensborough deputy chairman Michael Guthrie.

The first café will go live in Bristol next February. The concept will then roll out to between 150 and 200 venues within the next three to five years. This will see the 46 Deep Pan Pizza Restaurants Queensborough recently bought, rebranded as Fresco.

Fresco will be the latest in a series of café-style ventures.

Hill Rae Smith Graphics worked on the identity, packaging, graphics and signage for Café Coco, a new café-bar in Chiswick. Independent interior designer Janet Horton created the interiors with input from illustrator Michael Munday. If successful the concept will be rolled out further.

Meanwhile, Caulder Moore designed the interior for Café Parisa Bar, the first of a planned chain from Parisa Group. The south London outlet combines an off-licence with a wine bar.

Parisa Group carried out the branding in-house and is currently looking for further sites.

And no-frills airline EasyJet has created the graphics for its proposed chain of cyber cafés in-house. The first of 10-20 Easy-Cafés is scheduled to open in central London in six months’ time. Interior design has not yet been considered.