Hospitality fintech Shuffle expects to invest £10m in Scottish venues
Hospitality fintech, Shuffle, has announced that it expects to invest more than £10m in Scottish bars and restaurants after launching in Glasgow and Edinburgh.
Shuffle, which combines a consumer-rewards app with funding for independent hospitality businesses, expanded north of the border following growth in Manchester and Liverpool.
The company believes its investment into Scottish venues could pass £10m as it builds its presence in the two cities, with plans already underway to help fund 10 new openings.
More than 55 Scottish restaurants, bars and cafés have joined the platform to date, such as Lioness of Leith, Pizza Geeks, the Stockbridge Eating House, the St Vincent bar, Cardinal, The Captain Darling and Lucky Yu, in Edinburgh. In Glasgow, some of the venues that have signed up include El Santo, Glaschu and The Delphine.
Co-founders Ollie Purdue and Enzo Ottens launched Shuffle in Manchester in 2024 before expanding to Liverpool and then to Edinburgh and Glasgow, with London and Newcastle next on the company’s roll-out plan.
Ollie, who has a background in early-stage investment, said the business was created to tackle one of the biggest problems facing ambitious, independent hospitality operators: access to capital.
He said: “Like early-stage start-up companies, hospitality owners have loads of drive and their own unique talents – you have to be excellent to succeed. That made me think: why isn’t anyone supporting them?
“Margins are thinner in hospitality, so operators need multiple ways to make money. Shuffle can help by driving more sales, making existing sites busier and funding new ones.”
Shuffle links to a customer’s bank card and automatically rewards spending at partner venues with cashback, averaging around 20 per cent and sometimes covering the full bill. Its model also provides funding to hospitality operators looking to expand.
Enzo, who previously worked for banking app, Loot and for Uber Eats, said: “We want to help independent hospitality businesses grow.
“There are some really bright spots and amazing things happening in the Scottish hospitality scene. The brands we work with have opportunities to scale and it’s very fulfilling to help people build businesses around something they’re passionate about.”
Ollie said Shuffle had already helped operators elsewhere launch additional venues and, in some cases, entirely new businesses: “We’re helping businesses become more resilient, expand and try new things, without having to put their houses on the line. Some operators have started whole new businesses because of the funding we can provide.
“The more people use Shuffle, the more we can invest in each city. We can fund new spots that are worth checking out and trying. Also, it’s a big opportunity for Glasgow and Edinburgh restaurants – while previously they may have looked at London as the next logical step, which is an incredibly competitive market, we can offer immediate inroads and a customer base in cities like Liverpool and Manchester.”
Ollie said the characteristics of the Edinburgh and Glasgow markets made them attractive for expansion: “Glasgow is buzzing and fiercely independent, and people really care about restaurant owners. Shuffle did really well in Manchester and we think they are similar cities in some ways.
“Edinburgh has a different food scene, but it’s also very exciting. We want to focus on growing both cities and there’s plenty of room to expand.”
Reflecting on the economic backdrop, he said: “The best businesses in hospitality are still making money and people will always want to go out, so there are lots of reasons to be positive.
“But it is a tough environment. The tax burden is huge and margins are getting squeezed. Operators don’t want to pass all those costs on to consumers, so it’s a balancing act.
“In Scotland, restaurant owners want to expand, grow and try new things. They’ve got ideas, but the banks often aren’t lending or owners have to put their house on the line.
“We’re able to take some of that pressure away by funding them. We’ll do more cities next year, but we also want to focus on growing Glasgow and Edinburgh.”
Shuffle said that 80 per cent of people who visit venues using its app are new diners.
Pictured: Ollie Purdue, co-founder of Shuffle
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