Chef
The bravado masks misplaced insecurities
in his talents as a business-savvy chef. Where Usher insists that he is reckless, others – myself included – would argue that, though humble to the core, he possesses an invaluable sense of instinct. If he could bottle and sell it, he’d be minted.
Usher opened Sticky Walnut in Hoole, Chester, in January 2011. He did so following a one week “get in” and on a budget so tight that he, now famously, had to choose between a combi-oven and new tables and chairs. The toss-up between whether diners would be drawn to the décor or the precision of the cook- ing was won by the latter and the cash was spent on a Rational oven. That he made the right decision is in no doubt. A Menuwatch write-up in The Caterer in 2012 led Sticky Walnut to the Cateys the fol- lowing summer, where Usher and his team picked up the Menu of the Year award – the first in a long line of well-earned accolades for this unassuming bistro. The Guardian restaurant critic Marina O’Loughlin further thrust Usher’s first solo venture into the spotlight with a rave review in Spring 2014, despite the chef publicly instruct- ing her not to visit. “Please don’t travel to eat
46 | The Caterer | 31 July 2015
Crowdfunding – all or nothing at all
Gary Usher outlined his ambition to raise £100,000 through crowdfunding site Kickstarter in a humorous video, created by graphic designer Dan Burns, on 2 October 2014. The all- or-nothing nature of the campaign meant the target had to be met in order to get any of the cash. Within 24 hours of launch, the Kickstarter page had received £24,000. “It felt like I’d just pressed
the button [to make the page go live] and someone pledged. Straightaway,” Usher says. “And then everyone started doing it. People were sticking £100 in and I couldn’t believe it.” The support for the campaign was incredible.
Usher’s circa 10,000 Twitter followers picked up the baton and ran with it and every time the campaign approached a milestone they would imploringly call for more pledges. Usher, however, only once asked for money. He explains: “Although
on video I’m asking for £100,000, I didn’t want to ask anyone for money. Out of every single tweet I did in the 28 days, I just asked for retweets; for people to spread the word. I think that’s important; a lot of people wouldn’t have given money if I’d asked for it directly.” There were a few lulls in
the pace of the pledges, a common phenomenon when it comes to crowdfunding. But when it hit £80,000,
with three days to go, it shot up, largely down to it being payday for many people. “I didn’t know this, but it’s something to consider for future crowdfunding,” he says. “It started going crazy and
my old boss Angela [Hartnett] put £500 in, then her partner Neil [Borthwick] put £500 in and it started going up and up. I went to sleep that Friday night and it was on nearly £90,000. I woke up the next morning and it was on £91,000.” Usher tweeted a picture of the latest figure with a simple “morning!” greeting, and Twitter once again sprang into action, determined to smash the target by lunchtime. It succeeded and the final tally reached £103,915.
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