Walaiti Rathore, a licensing specialist at Licensing Law Consultancy, has worked with Fletchergate Industries to obtain a late licence for their new concept, The Blind Rabbit, located at Weekday Cross, within Nottingham City Council’s saturation zone. The licence will now allow the premises to open until 1am in the week and 1.30am at the weekend to provide a New York inspired bar, grill and live entertainment experience. This is the third time Walaiti Rathore and Licensing Law Consultancy have worked with Fletchergate Industries to overcome the licensing challenges of the city’s saturation zone and help bring new and innovative concepts to the city; the first two were the popular Penny Lane and The Magic Garden. Fletchergate Industries also operate a number of other venues in the city, including The Hockley Arts Club and Das Kino. Their latest concept is inspired by the hustle and bustle of downtown New York bars and some of the US’s most iconic dive, burger joints and live entertainment venues. Michael Johnson, operations director at The Blind Rabbit, said: “We are thrilled to be opening our newest venture in Nottingham’s Lace Market – it is an absolutely beautiful building over three floors and it has a fantastic space outside for people to enjoy the summer weather. “The Blind Rabbit will be a place for everyone and will feature something new in a city that already offers so much. Outstanding food, drinks and service within the most causal of surroundings is what we aim to deliver with unique cocktails alongside what we boldly believe will be Nottingham’s best burgers.” Occupying a 5,000 sq ft, three-floored Victorian red brick building, the venue will be New York inspired inside – with an edgy vibe, flashes of neon and bold coloured textures that tie in with the brand’s signature style. Speciality cocktails designed by the people behind some of the city’s ‘impossible not to Instagram’ drinks creations will be central to The Blind Rabbit offering – alongside old school American bar games & live entertainment. Michael added: “We’re constantly striving to improve everything we do, whether it be bringing a bold new design to the city or challenging ourselves with exciting new food and drink offerings. “We want our venues to be an experience for everyone who walks through the door. The Blind Rabbit promises something entirely new for Nottingham – with its bold street art and graffiti walls to deliver an iconic venue that the city can be proud of.” The Blind Rabbit will open to the public on Friday 20 August 2021.

Licensing Law Consultancy is now working with restaurant franchise brand, Chaiiwala. The fast growing restaurant brand has plans for exponential growth in the UK and countries such as Canada, USA and Dubai. In the UK, they currently operate 30 stores and are opening an additional 12 stores by the end of the year with plans to open around a further 200 stores in the next five years. They are making similar progress in other countries. Chaiiwala has also developed a packaged version of their most popular products which have now entered the supermarket space. Chaiiwala’s franchise director, Nil Naik, said: “We are pleased to be teaming up with Walaiti Rathore and Licensing Law Consultancy as we enter the next phase of our growth and expansion. Their reputation and record for delivering outstanding licensing results, which are often reported in the media, speaks for itself. “They are very well connected in the industry as well as the world of licensing and work with major franchise brands which was equally important to us.” The Managing Director of Nottingham-based Licensing Law Consultancy, Walaiti Rathore, said: “It is very exciting to be working with Chaiiwala. Their achievements in a relatively short period of time and expansion plans are very impressive. “They have also shown that it is possible to continue to grow a strong brand which creates businesses for aspiring franchisees as well as create jobs during these challenging times.”

Today (15 June 2020) is the start of National Licensing Week (NLW), a five day annual event presenting the opportunity to celebrate the work that goes on behind the scenes by licensees, operators and regulators which is often invisible to the public until something goes wrong. NLW is designed to change that and raise awareness across the country. The underlying message is that ‘licensing is everywhere’. In June 2019, Licensing Law Consultancy organised and hosted the first large scale event of its kind, a party in Nottingham to celebrate and raise awareness of licensing and the role it plays in everyday lives. The event was attended by members of the Institute of Licensing, National Licensing Week, Nottingham Business Improvement District, Pub Watch, Hospitality Association, other industry representatives such as the Gambling Commission and leading operators with a local and national presence as well as businesses and professionals from all sectors. Guests were treated to canapes, dinner, complimentary drinks all evening and received designer gifts from global fashion retailer, Paul Smith. The Chair of the Institute of Licensing, Dan Davies, said: “I am delighted to support this event and I thank Walaiti Rathore for having the vision and energy to make this happen. Licensing touches the body politic at some of its most sensitive spots – covering areas such as alcohol sales, taxi and private hire, animal premises licensing, gambling and the protection of vulnerable people and much, much more. I think the general public are not fully aware of the role that licensing plays in public protection and Walaiti’s event will have done much to raise that awareness.” Following the success of the event, preparations were underway before the lockdown for a follow up invitation only event on a larger scale. This was due to take place on Friday 19 June 2020, the final day of NLW. The event will now go ahead at a later date after the necessary phase of the lockdown is lifted and hopefully before the end of summer. The Managing Director of Licensing Law Consultancy, Walaiti Rathore said: “My determination to repeat the event this year has only got stronger during these very challenging times. It is now more important than ever to highlight the importance of licensing and the important role it plays in everyday lives. “Once again, the idea will be not only to involve representatives or members of organisations within or closely connected to licensing but also people from businesses and professionals with no such connections. I believe this is the best way to reach out to the wider public. “I would like to thank the Nottingham Bid for their ongoing support for this event and for sharing the vision. A special mention also for Carter Legrand Wealth Strategies, Freedom Brewery and Alea for their support.” A new date for the event will be announced soon.

Licensing Law Consultancy (LLC) recently hosted the first National Licensing Week event in Nottingham to celebrate and raise awareness of licensing and the role it plays in everyday lives. National Licensing Week (NLW) is an opportunity to celebrate the work that goes on behind the scenes by licensees, operators and regulators which is often invisible to the public until something goes wrong. NLW is designed to change that and raise awareness across the country. The underlying message is that “licensing is everywhere.” NLW is in its fourth year but this the first event of this kind and on this scale – a party held at St James Hotel on 20 June 2019. The event was attended by members of the Institute of Licensing, National Licensing Week, Nottingham Business Improvement District, Pub Watch, Hospitality Association, other industry representatives such as the Gambling Commission and leading operators with a local and national presence as well as leading businesses and professionals from all sectors. Guests were treated to canapes, dinner, complimentary drinks all evening and received designer gifts from global fashion retailer, Paul Smith. The Chair of the Institute of Licensing, Dan Davies said: “I am delighted to support this event and I thank Walaiti Rathore for having the vision and energy to make this happen. Licensing touches the body politic at some of its most sensitive spots – covering areas such as alcohol sales, taxi and private hire, animal premises licensing, gambling and the protection of vulnerable people and much, much more. I think the general public are not fully aware of the role that licensing plays in public protection and Walaiti’s event will have done much to raise that awareness.” The Chair of the Nottingham Hospitality Association, Richard Johal said: “As someone who is passionate about both Nottingham and the hospitality industry, I was delighted to hear that Walaiti Rathore and LLC chose this great city to hold the event to promote National Licensing Week and the great work they do in the UK. It has proved to be a great idea and was really well delivered by someone who continues to build on the influential contributions made to this industry, both locally and nationally.” Jeff Allen, Chair of the Nottingham Business Improvement District, said: “The implementation of licensing policy is very important to city centres, and it is great to see LLC taking the initiative to organise this event to raise awareness. We hope it will become a regular event as even in its first year it was extremely well supported by the local business community.” The Commercial Coordinator of National Licensing Week, Jade Craig said: “I was astonished by this amazing event to promote NLW to a wider audience and share one of the most important messages in our industry. It was an honour to attend and I would like to thank LLC and Walaiti Rathore for conceiving the idea and putting on this event. I could see attendees from a variety of backgrounds engaged in what NLW is about which was brilliant, and we now look forward to working with LLC and Walaiti on a repeat of this event next year.” The managing director of Licensing Law Consultancy (LLC), Walaiti Rathore said: “I had a vison to hold this event and I am humbled by all the guests who attended as it would not have been possible without them, some of whom travelled long distances to Nottingham to support LLC and this event. A special mention for St James Hotel, Carlsberg, Austin Moore and Partners, Michael Wisher Associates and Paul Smith for their support. “The idea was not only to involve representatives or members of organisations within or closely connected to licensing but also people from businesses and professionals with no such connections. I felt this was the best way to start to reach out to the wider public and I am pleased with the feedback from guests who found the NLW message to be an eye opener. “The event has had the desired effect very successfully and this will no doubt create a ripple effect to reach more people and create momentum. Due to this initial success the event will be repeated next June.”