Former Dragons' Den star Sarah Willingham has snapped up a major tourist attraction in Brighton. Sarah, 51, set up Nightcap PLC with her husband in 2021, and it owns several bar venues including major brands such as the Cocktail Club and Dirty Martini. Now, though, the Brighton local has focused on something closer to home, and bought the seafront observation tower Brighton i360. Brighton i360 closed in December last year after failing to pay off its eye-watering £51 million debt to Brighton and Hove City Council. It closed with immediate effect just before Christmas, making 109 employees redundant. After the venue couldn’t find a buyer the council agreed to write off the millions of debt, allowing Sarah’s nightcap to make the purchase of the tower’s remaining 115-year lease.
Sarah has released a statement about the exciting news, sharing: “We couldn't be happier to welcome the i360 to the Nightcap family and delighted that Brighton and Hove City Council has paved the way for us to keep this iconic landmark open. “We pass the i360 every day and were as disappointed as everyone else when it went into administration and no buyer was found. The impact of its closure would have been catastrophic to our local businesses and a blemish on this important part of the Brighton seafront,” she told the Daily Mail. The This Morning star concluded: “We hope we will get the support of our tight knit local community as we embark on this new chapter for the i360.”.
Councillor Jacob Taylor of the Brighton and Hove City Council seemed equally excited that the closed venue had a second chance, stating: “We are delighted that Nightcap has taken such a keen interest in revitalising the i360, and their passion and commitment to the city is evident. We think this is the best option for the city – giving a fresh start for the attraction, and helping to ensure this important stretch of seafront can thrive.”.
Nightcap’s major new acquisition comes after it reported a pre-tax loss of £1.8 million for the six months leading up to March 2024, following a £0.9 million loss a year earlier. The loss was due to issues such as ongoing train strikes and higher than anticipated integration costs for its Dirty Martini brand, alongside worrying changes in the hospitality sector as a whole. Sarah spoke about the losses, while making it clear that she thought Nightcap could survive the tough climate: ”We set out to build a great business at the back end of Covid and the economy has moved through several additional challenges from the energy crisis and rail strikes to interest rates, inflation and cost-of-living crisis throwing just about everything at us.
”I believe this environment is where some of the best businesses are built. With a rapidly changing landscape away from nightclubs and sticky dancefloors to late night party bars which are safer, more flexible and more inclusive environments, I believe that no other bar group is as well positioned to take advantage than Nightcap with the brands and estate that we have acquired and built over the last three years.”.
