Established in 2015, The Pitt was one of the first year-round street food markets in Scotland, but when the original site was closed for redevelopment in 2022, they took the opportunity to rebuild in a new location as a social enterprise.
Mainstream financial institutions were asking for a lot of collateral which we weren’t in a position to be doing, which is when we started to look for funding in the third sector. That’s when everything opened up for us, it all started to make sense and helped us to plan and measure our social impact more efficiently. The social investment will help us to get more funding and will be essential in us delivering the future dreams that we and the community have for the site.
Challenge
The Pitt in Leith was in operation until October 2022, when the site was closed for planned redevelopment, leaving the organisation without a home for their street market, which alongside being a hub for their local community, had also provided space, support and skills development for new food businesses and performance artists.
In the aftermath of COVID and against a backdrop of economic uncertainty, they found a site on West Shore Road, on the Granton Promenade in Edinburgh that would make the perfect new home for the street market. However, after repeated no’s and rejections from mainstream finance providers, who were also asking for quite a lot of collateral in exchange for the loan, they refocused on the core mission of The Pitt as an inclusive community space and decided to establish the new location as a social enterprise and seek impact-focused finance.
Solution
The location of the new site is breath-takingly beautiful and right next to the beach but it’s also in one of Scotland’s most deprived areas, meaning The Pitt could have a big impact on the local community.
Granton Project CIC went on to secure around £350,000 in quasi-equity from Firstport’s Catalyst Fund, alongside a further £150,000 from Foundation Scotland to help fund the redevelopment of the site to make it fit for purpose.
Revenue
Opening in December 2024, The Pitt is open all year round and is home to a 700-capacity event space that is available for hire and a pop-up market on weekends featuring fresh produce, alongside lots of other local crafts and goods. There’s also a coworking space, meeting room hire, an outdoor food market and a community sauna company.
All of these elements and more provide a diverse income stream and contribute to the financial resilience of the organisation.
Impact
The investment empowered the organisation to move forward with their bold vision for a new cultural, social and grassroots space where ideas can be trialed, tested and brought to life in a supportive, community environment.
We’re really impressed with the Founders’ ambitious plans for the project and we were really keen to support them in transforming a commercial enterprise in Leith to a social enterprise in Granton. It’s been eye-opening to see the progress made since we provided the loan and we look forward to seeing what’s next for The Pitt.