Article: REAL TALK - with SAMMY HEATHCOTE
REAL TALK - with SAMMY HEATHCOTE
Sammy Heathcote runs the Golborne deli wine shop. If you hadn't heard of it or if you missed the Mail On Sunday article about Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner's recent visit, the wine shop has been there since 2020. At that time covid restrictions prevented the Golborne deli from using the space to host their usual customers indoors and in August Sammy joined to curate a neighbourhood gathering point, with a wide-range of accessible and affordable wines available by the glass and a world-wide selection of wines available to buy. If you choose to buy by the bottle, you can sit to sample it at a very reasonable cost.
In nearly six years under Sammy's care, the Golborne deli wine shop has become the neighbourhood anchor for W10 residents and other surrounding postcodes, as well as an international lure for those in search of something relaxed, with a genuine sense of place and an ease-of-manner, an accessible education on wine (optional!) and somewhere truly restful to escape, at any time of day in London. Sammy's vinous credentials go way back and have deep roots in the high-end of London's dining scene. He's worked with Alain Ducasse, seeing his restaurant in the Dorchester achieve 3-star status during his time there, before opening the Bulgari hotel by taking charge of wines across the entire enterprise. Next up was the Clove Club, then the Devonshire Club, on to Cafe Royal as Head of wine and restaurant manager, before being furloughed in 2020.
I sat down with Sammy around the corner from the wine shop to discuss how the wine shop came to be, what's the future and what makes his life tick.
MF: Tell me about your day to day?
SH: To be honest with you mate, I don't even feel like I work... That age old saying - find something you love and never work another day in your life. In five years there has not been a single day when I have felt like not coming to work. I have terrific people surrounding me, always helpful and supportive in every aspect of my job. What do I do - I come to work, I sell wine, I chatter with folks who I consider to be mates, who also happen to be my customers, my regulars and I love that they trust us to host them during their time off. I try to convert more and more of our existing and loyal customer base from the deli, into wine drinkers. I just try to curate somewhere where people want to keep coming back to again-&-again, which means we need to offer fair value and provide somewhere that's hospitable. It's that simple.
I also want to expand the business and we're looking at other sights. We're really close.
I also want to expand the business and we're looking at other sights. We're really close.
REAL thought: keep saying yes to the things that feed you in life and you will find your tribe. Belonging is universal.
MF: What would you like to do more of?
MF: What would you like to do more of?
SH: Spend more time with family and train.
MF: Say no more!
SH: I'd like to spend more time with my two kids, but also my broader family; my father in Australia, my sister etc. And the more I train the better I feel about myself. Training grounds me.
MF: How does movement and exercise help you physically as well as mentally?
SH: I exercise in the morning - it wakes me up and sets me up. I do my best work after training. Maximising sleep, then getting up in the morning and getting it done is the routine that gets the best out of me. I love boxing, I don't think about anything while I'm doing it. No matter what my problems are, it's totally meditative.
SH: I exercise in the morning - it wakes me up and sets me up. I do my best work after training. Maximising sleep, then getting up in the morning and getting it done is the routine that gets the best out of me. I love boxing, I don't think about anything while I'm doing it. No matter what my problems are, it's totally meditative.
REAL thought: Inspired by boxers, our brand narrative is anchored in the meditative state we occupy when we move.
MF: How do you deal with hard things?
SH: Training is one way - it's very therapeutic and gets rid of negative energy. A glass of wine is another way for sure. To immerse myself in a really top glass of wine is a joy and to be in the kitchen too, I find it very peaceful chopping veg. But if I have any issues that I need to work through, I speak to my old man. He's been through it all before and his counsel is exactly what I need if I am struggling for perspective. He's my rock.
MF: Is there anything you feel like getting off your chest?
SH: My biggest gripe is the state of this country. Brexit still baffles me. I love London and I would never leave London until Brexit was followed by covid. Now I'm just viewing the government go after small businesses like we're cannon fodder, because they don't dare go after the bigger corporations who employ an entire department to treat tax like it's a revenue-generating entity.
Sammy wearing his Eminence jacket
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