Chip shop set to bottle up its bespoke sauces

The Belgian chip shop in West Street opened last year, run by brothers Chan and Dashal Beevers.

They wanted to bring the traditional double-cooked chips famous in Belgium and Amsterdam to the UK – and chose Brighton as the place to start. But the range of 26 sauces is a big part of what draws customers in.

Now, after a successful first year, Befries wants to bottle its sauces under the name ‘Be Saucy’, but needs to raise £40,000 to kick-start the project.

Last week, the company announced that customers who wanted to invest could purchase convertible bank loans at a minimum £1,000, which would earn interest, and could be converted into shares.

Dashal said: “We have always had a long-term vision for the business. A big part of it was jarring our sauces. What we are trying to do that is different to other Belgian chip shops. With Chan and Joe, our other brother, being chefs, we are taking an old tradition and modernising with our flavours.”

Befries is to start bottling up its most popular mayonnaise sauces, including garlic, vegan basil, dill and gherkin and green peppercorn offerings.

Dashal said: “Our most common request is if people can buy our sauces. We have been wanting to launch Be Saucy for several months now. But we are reinvesting our profits and have not had the cash flow to spare.

“We have been approached by companies or people who are investors, they see the potential. They see it is the next food fad. We have been excited by it.”

The brothers are keen, however, to stick to their values by providing a great experience in their Brighton shop, and focus of the quality of customer service and of course, its sauces.

This is why Befries has decided to go it alone, by using convertible bank notes – which is how it initially set up the business – to give customers the chance to invest and earn interest, and even shares.

The vision is to sell the sauces from the shop on West Street, and small retailers across the city, and the brothers plan to buy a food van to showcase their chips and dips at events in the city and beyond.

Eventually, they hope to set up and online store, and sell the sauces on a larger scale.

Dashal said: “We thought we would open up the chance for all of you who believe in us so much, to invest and help us move forward in our next stage of the journey in fulfilling your long awaited dreams of bottled sauces and BeFries on wheels.”

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