Two Newcastle city centre nightclubs are sold to new operator

Two popular nightspots in Newcastle city centre have been bought by new owners.

Market Shaker Group - which already operates Market Shaker and Pumphrey’s on the Cloth Market and Frate, behind Grey Street - has bought The Mushroom on Grainger Street and Mimo on Pudding Chare.

The Mushroom is a basement bar/nightclub in Newcastle city centre, which has been bought from Vaulkhard Group. Mimo is a two storey building which currently houses a bar on the ground floor and a nightclub on the first floor. It was previously owned by City Pubs Limited.

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Robert Clarkson, co-founder of Market Shaker Group, said: “We first viewed Mimo more than 10 years ago so it’s incredibly exciting to have finally been able to add it to our portfolio. Along with The Mushroom, it’s been part of Newcastle’s nightlife for a long time and we plan to make sure it’s a place people enjoy visiting for many more years to come.

“We’ve got big ambitions for Mimo which we’ll be announcing soon. We’ve already successfully given Pumphreys a new lease of life, and most recently we’ve built Frate from the ground up, and Mimo will be the next on our list for a transformation. And The Mushroom will stay as it is, as a much-loved venue for so many people in Newcastle.”

Newcastle law firm Sintons managed the purchase of the lease of both sites for Market Shaker Group.

Alok Loomba, partner at Sintons and expert in leisure and hospitality, said: “Sintons’ has worked alongside Robert and his team for more than a decade, as they’ve grown their business from one city centre venue to their current five. It’s been a real pleasure to be involved in the development of such a variety of sites, which have all gone on to be fixtures in our city’s social scene.”