William Curley successfully crowdfunds £80,000 to open Soho chocolate boutique

Chocolatier William Curley has successfully acquired more than £80,000 in crowdfunding to support the opening of his flagship store in Soho.

The funds will go towards turning his operation in Smiths' Court, which he has said will be "the ultimate luxury chocolate experience", into a flagship for his brand. He is currently running the site as a pop-up, with a view to launching it fully in the New Year.

Rewards for pledges ranged from a signature box of truffles for £15 to consultancy work and bespoke chocolate ranges in the top bracket of £8,000.

After reaching the target Curley wrote on Twitter: "Soho, we are coming for you! We have reached our target. Huge thank you to all of our supporters."

Curley previously ran chocolate boutiques in Belgravia, London, and Richmond, Surrey, with backing from the Rothschild family. However, he parted company with his co-directors of the business two years ago and retained a concession in Harrods, Knightsbridge.

After starting his career as an apprentice chef at Gleneagles in Auchterarder, Perthshire, Curley went on to work under Pierre Koffmann, Marco Pierre White and Raymond Blanc. He was then appointed the youngest ever chef patissier at the Savoy hotel, London.

Curely has been named Britain's Best Chocolatier four times by the Academy of Chocolate.

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