Ground Coffee Society is taking over the community cafe at St Mary’s Church following the closure of Putney Pantry in December.
The cafe space in the Brewer Building is currently undergoing a complete refit, with new plumbing, electrical systems and wood panelling being installed. Construction crews have been working around the clock, with a target opening date of two weeks’ time.
The takeover brings Dave and Tracey Dickinson back to running a cafe after focusing on their coffee roasting business in Wandsworth Town since 2020. The couple previously ran Grind Coffee Bar on Lower Richmond Road before stepping back from retail to concentrate on roasting and supplying coffee to events and wholesale clients.
The Dickinsons have connections with St Mary’s School and the church community. A notice on the cafe door says the church felt they were “the perfect people to partner with for this next chapter” given their experience running cafes and their local roots.
Putney Pantry closed last month after 12 years serving the church community. Owner Issa Cissokho shut the cafe to pursue his ambition of opening a Senegalese restaurant.
The renovation at St Mary’s is extensive. The interior is being stripped back and rebuilt with dark painted walls and custom wooden furniture. Building work began on 5 January.
Ground Coffee Society operates a roastery in Wandsworth Town supplying cafes, restaurants and online customers. The company also provides coffee at sporting events including Queen’s Tennis Championships and The Open golf tournament. The St Mary’s cafe will be their first return to operating a retail cafe themselves in five years.
