Woods and Whiley become joint owners of Scout

Bartender Rich Woods has acquired an “equal stake” in London bar Scout, joining forces with Matt Whiley as co-partner, co-owner and co-cocktail conspirator of the venue.

Rich Woods has become a joint owner of London cocktail bar Scout with founder Matt Whiley

Scout relocated from its initial Shoreditch location to a new Hackney site in September last year, which included the opening of a new basement space, called Gold Tooth.

Woods and Whiley will now also run a joint consultancy business. This follows the launch of the pair’s drinks, creative and design agency earlier this year, called Weapons and Toys (WAT).

“Matt is one of the industry’s most modest individuals,” said Woods. “Bags of creativity, a unique vision and individualism in every stride.

“The more we’ve worked together on projects the greater my admiration, respect and appreciation has grown for his abundantly great ideas, and I’m ready to see what we can achieve with Scout and future brands.”

Scout’s sustainability ethos will continue, and the bar has pledged to only use goods sourced from the British Isles.

The duo has already started designing a new cocktail menu for Scout, which is “set to launch imminently”. It has been given the title ‘Eco Systems’, and will be separated into three key sections with four or five cocktails each: Metropolis and City, Oceans and Streams, and Woodlands and Forest.

The bar’s food offering will follow the same sustainable ethos, featuring a short snacks menu and a selection of main dishes.

Whiley added: “Rich and I share a dynamic bond. Both driven and passionate, yet laid back, we work in incredibly similar ways but bring wildly different, creative ideas to the table, and that’s set to bring an extra spark to Scout.

“Rich constantly pushes those around him to be better at their craft and I’m really looking forward to the next step in the journey of Scout alongside him.”