Jöro pair to launch second Sheffield ‘grocerant’

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Jöro owners Luke French and Stacey Sherwood-French will open a retail and hospitality business as part of the redevelopment of Sheffield’s Oughtibridge Paper Mill.

Described as a ‘grocerant’ - a hybrid of grocery store and restaurant - Shöp will house several food vendors, curated by the pair, and will sell high-quality food, drink and retail products.

The project is due to launch in spring 2023 following the transformation of the 150-year-old mill, the project will be Luke and Stacey’s second Shöp following the launch of a much small iteration of the concept earlier this year in the city’s Cutlery Works in Neepsend Lane. 

The Sheffield-based husband-and-wife team who, as well as the highly-rated Restaurant Jöro, also operate robata concept Konjö and four-bedroom property House of Jöro within the city, say Shöp will sell a selection of the quality Yorkshire produce, natural wines, charcuterie, cheeses used by the couple in their restaurants, rooms and at home.  

By night, Shöp will sell wines by the glass and simple snacks, and will host flower-arranging classes, knife-sharpening workshops, and events for the local community such as meet the chef or producer.

Among the items likely to be sold in Shöp will be fresh organic fruit and vegetables, Yorkshire wagyu, Sheffield honey, and crockery made by a local ceramicist, craft beers, kombucha, Caravan coffee, cookbooks by Luke as well as books from the Phaidon stable, prints and stationery from local artists, skincare products from Pelegrims, and Jöro brands such as chef toolkits, gin and candles. 

The former mill, which has received planning consent to become a mixed-use food hall and community hub, will also offer a co-working space. All outlets will look onto Oughtibridge Valley, one of Sheffield’s most beautiful, natural settings.  

“We are so excited to be involved with the repurposing on this incredible site and we cannot wait to open the doors of our new concept. We are passionate about the region and are proud to showcase a lot of food and drink from Sheffield as well as the county of Yorkshire,” says Luke. 

“In addition, though, we will be offering quality items from further afield, such as wines from Sagar + Wilde, Wildfarmed flour, single species charcoal from Oxfordshire, hand-made skincare products, Neal’s Yard Cheeses, and much more.”  

Stacey adds: “Extending our group of hospitality businesses into retail feels like a natural step for us, particularly after we started selling products online during lockdown Our customers are frequently asking us where we buy our produce and products from – supplies that the public can’t easily access or might not be familiar with - and so it seemed like a logical move to grow our collection of businesses in this direction. 

The pair launched Restaurant Jöro in a shipping container in 2016 and followed up with Konjö in 2019. In 2021 they launched  House of Jöro, a boutique hotel close to their flagship.