This isn’t a sponsored post.
Pause opening in King’s Heath this month
Via Laura for Pause
May 2022 Pause a much-loved pop-up coffee shop, is set to get a permanent home this month as the owners unveil plans for a new residence in Birmingham’s King’s Heath.
Opening in Kings Court (High Street) from Wednesday 25th May, the bricks and mortar coffee shop is ‘a dream come true‘ for owners Farah Chaudry and Rory McGhie who are thrilled to join the thriving King’s Heath hospitality scene.
Famous for its quality coffee and creative bakes, Pause is set to provide not only a relaxed venue to meet friends and family, but also an inclusive community-focused space where care is at the forefront of everything.
Encouraging customers to enjoy a moment of calm served with a slice of kindness, locals can expect a warm welcome and a peaceful space within one of Brum’s most popular suburbs.
Conceived during the pandemic, Pause started life as a home delivery service, providing quality coffee and sweet treats to Brummies before Farah and Rory enjoyed pop-up success in venues across Stirchley and Bournville.
With over fifteen years of hospitality experience between them, the inspiring duo believe (as for many Brummies) the pandemic helped them reassess what was most important, and inspired them to focus on serving the community with compassion.
Farah – who left a successful law career to pursue her lifelong passion for baking – says:
Pause was born during lockdown at a time when people needed care and connections, but they were often quite difficult to find.
When we opened our first popup, there were lockdown restrictions in place that meant you could only meet one person from another household for a walk. The name came from the fact that during this turbulent time, our customers could come in for a takeaway but were not able to sit in with us.
We wanted our customers to pause for a brief moment and allow themselves to be cared for – it was important then and it’s still at the heart of what we do and will be when we open our doors in King’s Heath.”
With so many other incredible independents in the area, it made sense for the couple to pick a location that champions small, locally owned businesses, with Rory noting it feels like the right place to be at the right time:
We were contacted by a friend of ours, Sabrina Fung of blowwater.co, who told us that a great space was becoming available in Kings Heath. She knew we were looking for a permanent home and introduced us to our landlord, Paul – we’re so grateful to her.
Making our home in King’s Heath came as a bit of surprise to us, as we had created a solid customer base in Stirchley, but as soon as we visited the space we knew it was the right move for us. We also spoke with Levain and Cherry who were excited to have us in Kings Court, and we’ve already started planning some exciting collaborations.”
And after such successful popups at Stirchley staples Verbena and Artefact, how do they feel about their upcoming launch of their own shop?
Rory says:
Coffee shops are all about creating safe spaces for people to just be people – a sanctuary. Life is so busy and with all the running around we find ourselves doing it’s important to have the time to stop, take a breath and find some peace. We can’t wait to welcome everyone to our new, permanent home.”
Farah concludes:
We’re so excited to join the thriving independent scene that make Birmingham so unique and special. We can’t wait to open the doors and get to know our new community. What Pause becomes is ultimately going to be a collaboration between us and our customers – we are excited to see what it becomes! This means everything to us.”
Pause will be located at Kings Court, 90, High Street, King’s Heath, Birmingham B14 7JZ and is set to open Wednesday 25th May. Open Wed-Sun, times TBC.
News, updates and announcements will be posted via the Pause Instagram page. Please note: pop-up at Verbena is now closed.
