Tom Brown and Alyn Williams among chefs launching sites with Neil Rankin and Handley Amos' new Pepper Collective in 2020

Tom Brown, Alyn Williams, Gizzi Erskine and Jasmine Hemsley are among the high-profile chefs who will launch restaurants with the newly formed Pepper Collective in 2020.

Headed by restaurateurs Neil Rankin, of Temper and Simplicity Burger, and Handley Amos, of Nando’s, Benugo and Creams, Pepper Collective will provide investment opportunities, financial backing and expertise to support operators eyeing new projects.

The collective sits under partnerships and experiences agency Salt, which is headed by CEO Andrew Fishwick who said: “We all know our sector is changing beyond recognition and we believe that by working with the best, by being at the vanguard of the new movement and by incorporating new ways of thinking, we can create a group that makes a difference.”

Projects under development include a new site from Brown, whose debut London restaurant Cornerstone launched in 2018. Further details are expected in Spring with a launch pencilled for 2020.

Michelin-starred Williams, who had an acrimonious parting of ways with London’s Westbury Mayfair hotel in October, is also working with the collective to deliver his next project, a fine-dining restaurant alongside pub and boutique rooms, which is expected to launch this summer.

Meanwhile, Hemsley is working with the group to open Veda Baby! an all-day dining offering in Soho’s Wardour Street serving a simple seasonal menu in a canteen style while incorporating ancient Ayurvedic food principles.

Spring 2020 will see the first opening of chef Erskine and nutritionist Rosemary Ferguson’s F!lth burger joint in London’s West End. F!lth, which is eyed for a national roll-out, will be fully sustainable and provide a range of burgers, containing six portions of fruit and vegetables in each meal.

Summer 2020 will see the opening of Fifty Carnaby in the Soho site previously home to a host of London’s most influential clubs, the most recent of which was Columbo’s in the 1970s. The Pepper Collective has plans to create a 120-capacity live music space and late-night cocktail bar, which will be designed in collaboration with Lenny Kravitz's creative studio and musically programmed by The Lost Estate.

In Autumn Rob Roy Cameron, who opened 41 Degrees in Barcelona as head chef before moving on to Hoja Santa where he won a Michelin star, as well as working at Roux at the Landau in London’s Langham hotel, will open a 50-cover concept restaurant serving up a culinary waltz through his varied influences.

Pepper Collective is also collaborating on wellness concept Pillar, which will incorporate a digital fitness studio, a space to rejuvenate and monitor your body as well as a restaurant. Pillar is set to open in three major cities in collaboration with performance coach and wellness expert Harry Jamieson.

Three sites have also been identified for healthy chip shop concept Root, planned to launch this summer. The sites will serve seasonal root vegetables that have been air fried with flavoured salt and a freshly made sauce.

The Pepper Collective is also collaborating with restaurateur Antonio Civita to grow Italian sandwich concept Panino Giusto in the UK, with eight sites planned in the next three years.

On top of all this, Pepper Collective will look to utilise its experience beyond traditional bricks and mortar restaurants with events and catering operations as well as wholesale opportunities including a range of meat-free products.

The collective includes (pictured from left to right) CEO Fishwick, head of purpose Carolyn Reeves, talent and partnerships director Eliot Collins, managing director Amos, creative director Rankin, commercial director Paul Fleming, marketing director Rob Wigman and HR director MJ Roberts.