Wine merchant completes premises relocation with £100k investment

An independent wine merchant will now be able to complete its relocation to a new premises after securing a business loan from Finance Yorkshire.

Bon Coeur Fine Wines Limited, which is currently based near Masham, has used a £100k investment to complete a move to a 32,000 sq ft site at Melsonby, North Yorkshire.

Founded in London in 1994 by Yorkshireman James Goodhart, who relocated the business back to his homeland in 2008, Bon Coeur has established itself one of the UK’s leading independent wholesale wine merchants, serving a range of trade, corporate and private clients nationwide.

Samantha Goodhart, who runs Bon Coeur alongside her husband James, said: “We have been looking for the right property for over two years. This is the ideal location for the business and features 8,000 square feet of offices, showroom space and tasting rooms.

“It will also feature a demo kitchen as we firmly believe that wine is as much about enjoyment as education. Yorkshire is home to many first-rate chefs and restaurants and has become something of a gastronomic powerhouse. We are aiming to achieve the same level of sophistication and knowledge when it comes to wine.

Samantha concluded: “September will be our 21st anniversary, so it is fitting that we will be settled in our new premises by then.”

As well as employing local people, Bon Coeur has also created a graduates programme. It is an independent company holding no agencies, buying wine direct from producers and importing from all over the world. Mark Hunter, from the firm’s accountant, Murray Harcourt, introduced Bon Coeur to Finance Yorkshire.

Jonathan Craig, Finance Yorkshire investment manager, added: “Over the last 20 years, Bon Coeur has become a leading name in the industry, and the relocation to state-of-the-art premises will cement that further. We are proud to be associated with the business and have every confidence in Jamie and Samantha and the rest of the team.”