LDC Top 50 2024
Adam and Drew Jones
Founders
Permanently Unique
After qualifying as a solicitor, aged 22, Adam Jones was at a crossroads. “I wanted the freedom to be creative,” he says. He abandoned the law, went travelling and set up a luxury concierge business in Marbella. In 2015, he teamed up with brother Drew to open their first restaurant, TATTU, in Manchester.
“We didn’t have a plan to open more than one,” Drew admits. Today, their hospitality brand, Permanently Unique, has five TATTU sites in the UK and two sister brands, FENIX and Louis. “We’re also taking TATTU to Dubai,” added Adam. “Our brands offer truly unique experiences, and we want to share them with the world.”
Our brands offer truly unique experiences, and we want to share them with the world.”
Q&A
Where did the idea for TATTU come from?
Adam: When I came back to the UK from Spain, my brother and I took over the 12-month lease of a pub on Lark Lane in Liverpool. We did everything, from working the bar to marketing to preparing food. It was hard work, but it was amazing. Across the road was a tattoo parlour and the people there became our best customers and friends. That’s where we got the idea for using body art and self-expression as a basis for a restaurant concept. Two years later, we opened TATTU.
Tell me about your expansion plan?
Drew: We followed the proposed path for HS2, opening restaurants in Manchester, Leeds, Birmingham, Edinburgh and finally London. That ended up being a sound strategy because these cities have seen huge investment. We never want to saturate the market with TATTU sites – we want to maintain its exclusivity. Instead, we look for new unique concepts like our modern Greek restaurant FENIX and a new Italian American concept, opened this year, called Louis.
What’s been the biggest challenge you have faced?
Adam: Covid-19 was the hardest as it closed all our restaurants. We took that time to focus on creating the next brand for our portfolio. When we reopened, demand was exceptional, and remains strong across all our sites in a post pandemic world. Replication is also a huge challenge, but it also keeps us focussed on staying ahead of our competition.
What does ambition mean to you?
Adam: I try not to get carried away. One day we may have a failure and, in the restaurant business, you are only as good as your last meal. We try not to look far ahead as that means taking our eye off the ball.
