Gary Usher crowdfunds £100k in 11 hours
The chef was hoping to raise the full amount on Kickstarter in 100 hours, but met the goal this morning after launching the campaign at 9pm yesterday evening (11 March).
He has so far raised over £104,000 from more than 1,170 backers towards Kala, which will be his sixth restaurant and first in central Manchester, with three days of the Kickstarter remaining.
Usher announced the crowdfund at the end of February after admitting he had underestimated the costs of opening Kala and would need to return to crowdfunding or the restaurant would never open.
"I am honestly struggling to get my head around last night," says Usher. "It’s not really about the money, it’s the people believing in what we’re trying to do at Elite Bistros. The support we have is always incredible and not just from those who pledge, but everyone who we work with on a daily basis.
“We only realised a few weeks ago that we were going to need more money to open Kala and yet we have managed to raise this amount in such a short period of time. The sense of community we have at Elite Bistros is really special and something I never take for granted. The money means we can continue with the Kala build, be open by May and we really can’t wait. Manchester, we’ll see you soon.”
Usher opened his first restaurant Sticky Walnut in Chester in 2011 and has since crowdfunded over £400,000 towards the launch of Hispi in Chorlton, Burnt Truffle in Heswall, Wreckfish in Liverpool and Pinion in Prescot.
Both Hispi and Wreckfish appeared in Restaurant magazines' top 100 places to eat in the UK last year, ranking 46 and 19 respectively.
To view the Kickstarter page click here.
