Big Licks, the Manchester restaurant that’s found the ‘sweet spot’ between amazing burgers and delicious desserts, is sailing through a huge crowdfunding campaign.
The restaurant, which has an eye-catching location down on Liverpool Road as well as two sites in Scotland, has already raised a whopping £135,000 for its expansion dreams.
It’s now pushing to hit £150,000 so that it can open new restaurants and franchises across the UK.
Big Licks was first launched by two teenagers in 2009 as a takeaway – it’s now gone on to be a rapidly expanding name bringing in £3m in sales and more than 400,000 customers in the last 12 months alone.
On their menu you’ll find incredible smash burgers (with up to four patties in each bun) made with free-range grass-fed beef that they source directly from farm, or buttermilk chicken topped with their signature ranch sauce.
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There’s also an impressive menu of house-churned ice cream made with quality local ingredients, and cakes, cheesecakes and brownies all baked in house daily.
All that is alongside fried chicken, loaded fries, and other mouth-watering sides.
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Next on the agenda for Big Licks is expansion across the country, offering up the chance to become a shareholder in this bright young business.
They want to use the money raised to prepare the business for franchising, with a target to open 18 restaurants by 2027.
Then any extra money raised will be used to open more company-owned restaurants.
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And there are rewards on offer for those who choose to invest in Big Licks.
If you invest £100, you’ll get a Big Licks White Card which gets you 10% off in store, as well as owning a share of the business.
Then the rewards continue with other things like free burgers and shakes all the way to merch and much bigger discounts.
Co-founder Anees Ahmed said: “It is clear that the potential is great.”
He added: “We believe one of the key ingredients to a successful restaurant is creating a hangout spot, a vibe. That will always be our aim when you come to Big Licks.”
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The businessman then said: “We won’t compromise on quality. We will always keep sourcing within head office. This means we keep producing our own ice cream using locally sourced organic milk and the finest Italian flavours.
“We’ve found that sweet spot. The combination of sweet desserts and smashing burgers that opens up audience’s doors, covering off every craving.
“We want you to be part of the journey and become a shareholder in Big Licks.”
You can find out more about the Big Licks crowdfunder through Crowdcube here.
*Don’t invest unless you’re prepared to lose all the money you invest. This is a high-risk investment and you are unlikely to be protected if something goes wrong.
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A huge festival dedicated to tequila and mezcal is coming to Manchester this month
Daisy Jackson
Manchester’s first-ever Mezcal and Tequila Festival is taking place this month, filling Manchester Cathedral with tastings, masterclasses, cocktails and street food.
The massive event will see the Grade I-listed building transformed into an agave spirits tasting floor, featuring more than 100 varieties of premium tequilas and mezcals from some of Mexico’s best producers including El Jimador, Ojo de Tigre, El Sueno, Los Arcos, Del Maguey, Cazcabel, Komos, Nixta, Tapatio, El Tequileno, Tiempo and many more.
Festival-goers will be able to gain exclusive insights into the craftsmanship behind these spirits, sampling (responsibly, of course) from dozens of stands.
All samples, plus a limited-edition clay tasting copita, will be included in the ticket price – there’s no token system here and no extra charges for samples.
The new Mexican-inspired drinks festival only debuted in Glasgow back in Spring 2023 but it unsurprisingly went down an absolute storm – after all, what’s not to like a big festival full of booze?
Bartenders will stir up cocktails at the bespoke cocktail bar while the crowds are kept fed by delicious street food, including Mexican-inspired Taco Or Don’t, previously featured at the British Streetfood Awards.
And it’d be remiss of you to leave the festival empty-handed when you can take a taste of Mexico home from the exclusive bottle shop provided by Drinkmonger on site (with discount tokens included in the ticket price).
A tequila and mezcal festival is heading on Manchester. Credit: Supplied
Colin Campbell, one of Copita’s co-founders said: “We’re really excited to be bringing Copita to Manchester. It’s gone down brilliantly in Glasgow the last two years so we felt now was the right time to take it on the road and we couldn’t think of a better place than Manchester to head to next!
“It’s a really easy-going event with a great atmosphere, lots of local street food, shopping and music, so whether you’re an aficionado or a casual sipper we’re confident you’ll have a great time.”
The Copita Mezcal and Tequila Festival will be at Manchester Cathedral on Saturday 14 September.
Spinningfields to celebrate launch of new app with competition to win hundreds of FREE prizes
Emily Sergeant
You can be in with a chance of winning one of hundreds of free prizes just by heading down to Spinningfields next week.
In case you hadn’t heard, Spinningfields has just launched a brand-new app that’s now available to download, and in a bid to mark the occasion and properly celebrate this exciting launch, the city centre leisure and business district will be hosting an epic ‘Spin to Win’ event where there are hundreds of prizes to be won.
The new Spinningfields app is your ultimate guide to everything happening in the area, and it gives you access to special offers, fun monthly competitions, invitations to exciting events, community news, volunteering opportunities, and so much more.
Oh, and the best part about it? It’s free to download and sign up.
To celebrate the launch of our Spinningfields app, join us at Spinningfields Square between 8am and 5.30am on Tuesday 10 September. Download our FREE app, grab a FREE coffee from 92 Degrees (just for showing up), and spin to win some amazing prizes!
To start making the most of all of these exciting perks, you just need to download the Spinningfields app from the App Store or Google Play on your phone and verify your account, and then once you’ve done that, you’ll be able to head on down to Spinningfields Square next Tuesday (10 September) to spin the wheel for your chance to win some amazing prizes.
Some of the prizes on the jam-packed lineup include tickets to Chaos Karts and The Crystal Maze LIVE Experience, £100 vouchers for Australasia, £50 vouchers for Fazenda and The Ivy Spinningfields, plus free coffees, waffles, and doughnuts from Black Sheep Coffee.
You could also win yourself some complimentary cosmetic treatments at The Medika Clinic, as well as loads more, all by just spinning the wheel.
Spinningfields is celebrating the launch of its new app with a competition to win hundreds of free prizes / Credit: Supplied
And if the prizes somehow weren’t good enough to tempt you down to Spinningfields on their own, then luckily, there’ll also be a free freshly-brewed filter coffee for everyone who downloads the app and shows up on the day, while stocks last.
Basically, you’re guaranteed to walk away a winner no matter what.
The Spinningfields ‘Spin to Win’ official app launch is happening at Spinningfields Square on Tuesday 10 September from 8am to 5:30pm, and as organisers are anticipating the event will be busy one, it’s recommended that you download the app and verify your account before attending to ensure a smooth experience.