Jamie Oliver's new high-street retailing concept Recipease allows shoppers the choice to grab food and go, or stay and whip up a meal themselves. Darren Davidson reports
Celebrity chef. Author. Restaurateur. Campaigner. You would think Jamie Oliver had enough on his plate, but apparently not.
His latest business venture has taken him to the high street - Northcote Road near Clapham Junction in London, to be precise. Recipease is a cross between a cookery school and a delicatessen described in the website blurb as "a food and kitchen emporium".
Pitched against M&S and Waitrose, as well as the foodie haven of Northcote Road food market, Recipease features a substantial retail offer. As well as high-end meat, fruit and vegetables, condiments and preserves, it sells a wide selection of off-the-shelf oven-ready meals such as Roasted Vegetable Macaroni Cheese and Mega Mozzarella Meatballs, prepared on-site.
But the big draw is the kitchen. Before 7pm walk-in customers can take a 'make' class on a giant work-station at the back of the shop. Groups, typically of eight, prepare evening meals under their own steam from a selection of easy-to-follow recipes in under 10 minutes. Once the meals are prepared, staff pack them into containers with cooking instructions.
The 'make' meals are priced competitively against other stores in the area. Most meals are under £5 - Fantastic Fish Pie and Simple Baked Lasagne will both set you back £4.45 for a single portion, for example, while portions for two are just £1 extra.
After 7pm, the work-station becomes the scene of a more full-on culinary experience. In a 'learn' class, which has to be booked in advance, pupils can take an hour-long lesson in knife skills (£25) or learn how make a risotto (£35) or fish pie (£30) under the tutelage of an experienced chef.
Comparisons will inevitably be drawn with south west London rival The Kitchen, which opened its doors in Parsons Green last year, adding a luxury spin on the easy meals trend pioneered Stateside. Recipease MD Simon Cochrane (above), however, claims his outlet is aimed at a broader demographic. "We're trying to get the community involved as much as possible, and have invited local schools and traders to participate in our lessons," he says.
So in a recession, will the locals really forego the local supermarket or a meal out for one of Jamie's dinners on their way home? Cochrane won't be drawn on sales targets or how many customers Recipease needs to get through its doors to make the business model viable. "It is a leap of faith because the concept of shopping in a supermarket has been around for ages," he admits. "We're offering people a mould-breaking change of behaviour."
Of course, Recipease has a trump card -the Jamie effect. Cochrane estimates Oliver has visited the shop about 10 times in its first month of business alone.
He was also instrumental in choosing the colour of the shop front. "I was thinking an earthy colour, but he just went 'Nahh, it will look too much like everyone else. Why not pink?'" A business Oliver is clearly confident will be in the pink in more ways than one.
Celebrity chef. Author. Restaurateur. Campaigner. You would think Jamie Oliver had enough on his plate, but apparently not.
His latest business venture has taken him to the high street - Northcote Road near Clapham Junction in London, to be precise. Recipease is a cross between a cookery school and a delicatessen described in the website blurb as "a food and kitchen emporium".
Pitched against M&S and Waitrose, as well as the foodie haven of Northcote Road food market, Recipease features a substantial retail offer. As well as high-end meat, fruit and vegetables, condiments and preserves, it sells a wide selection of off-the-shelf oven-ready meals such as Roasted Vegetable Macaroni Cheese and Mega Mozzarella Meatballs, prepared on-site.
But the big draw is the kitchen. Before 7pm walk-in customers can take a 'make' class on a giant work-station at the back of the shop. Groups, typically of eight, prepare evening meals under their own steam from a selection of easy-to-follow recipes in under 10 minutes. Once the meals are prepared, staff pack them into containers with cooking instructions.
The 'make' meals are priced competitively against other stores in the area. Most meals are under £5 - Fantastic Fish Pie and Simple Baked Lasagne will both set you back £4.45 for a single portion, for example, while portions for two are just £1 extra.
After 7pm, the work-station becomes the scene of a more full-on culinary experience. In a 'learn' class, which has to be booked in advance, pupils can take an hour-long lesson in knife skills (£25) or learn how make a risotto (£35) or fish pie (£30) under the tutelage of an experienced chef.
Comparisons will inevitably be drawn with south west London rival The Kitchen, which opened its doors in Parsons Green last year, adding a luxury spin on the easy meals trend pioneered Stateside. Recipease MD Simon Cochrane (above), however, claims his outlet is aimed at a broader demographic. "We're trying to get the community involved as much as possible, and have invited local schools and traders to participate in our lessons," he says.
So in a recession, will the locals really forego the local supermarket or a meal out for one of Jamie's dinners on their way home? Cochrane won't be drawn on sales targets or how many customers Recipease needs to get through its doors to make the business model viable. "It is a leap of faith because the concept of shopping in a supermarket has been around for ages," he admits. "We're offering people a mould-breaking change of behaviour."
Of course, Recipease has a trump card -the Jamie effect. Cochrane estimates Oliver has visited the shop about 10 times in its first month of business alone.
He was also instrumental in choosing the colour of the shop front. "I was thinking an earthy colour, but he just went 'Nahh, it will look too much like everyone else. Why not pink?'" A business Oliver is clearly confident will be in the pink in more ways than one.
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