Get to Know Little Swift

Little Swift in Margate is no ordinary café or bar. Whether you’re after a warming cup of coffee (Climpson & Sons!) or a frozen cocktail sitting by the water as the sun goes down, Little Swift have comfort, community and of course, sustainability, front of mind. 

We spoke with Charlotte about why supporting local is so important to them and what makes the Margate community different to the rest. 

Tell us, back in 2019, what inspired you to start Little Swift?

Steve, Taylor and I were working for a beer importer before they went bust in March 2019. Unemployed and wondering what to do next, we felt there was still space to evolve a business and to offer a really wonderful drink selection to both locals and visitors. We bought the assets and essentially went from being unemployed to directors and running the show within a few weeks. 

We've never been myopic about being local, our passion has been about forging meaningful connections with our local community as well producers and importers, this allows us to create something truly unique in Little Swift.

What makes the community of Margate so special to you?

We have a great breadth of local businesses that are passionate about what they do and so supportive of one another. There's a sense of hope in Margate, as people have escaped the city to do something they love. You can really never get bored here with so much to do and nature right on your doorstep. We love that people come to Little Swift for more than just a bite to eat and a drink - it’s a real community vibe and a great place to chat.

We love that you use decent packaging products, what made you decide to use sustainable packaging?

We’ve always been conscious of our impact right from our suppliers - working with winemakers who care about their soil, craft breweries who care how much they pay their staff etc… so it just made sense to care about our packaging too. It’s about having a 360 view of sustainability in the business. We have our own little garden on the roof of Little Swift where we grow our own herbs and berries etc. which we use in our seasonal cocktails and we also compost. There’s unfortunately a big litter issue in Margate, so we want to focus on what we as a business can do better and help solve these issues. We already knew about the decent packaging brand from all the great coffee shops using them and loved the selection of bold colours, so it was an easy choice. 

What’s your go-to frozen cocktail choice? 

Our special Cherry Amaretto Sour we created. But our Frozen Margherita is a staple on our menu that we will never lose - it’s hard to keep up with demand!

Tips for things to do in Margate (aside from Little Swift of course!)?

You have to go for a wander along the beach, and a dip in the historic tidal pool at Walpole Bay, this is the essence of Margate. There are loads of great art galleries and a walk around the Old Town to visit the various vintage and independent shops is a fun way to spend the afternoon. On a sunny day, fish and chips from Peter’s Fish Factory - you might be waiting a while but it’s totally worth it! And they go perfectly with a takeaway cocktail from Little Swift…

What are you most excited about for the future of Little Swift?

We’re looking to expand our non-alcoholic drinks offering, providing more choice to everyone in a space that’s rapidly growing in demand. We love using our homegrown produce in the Little Swift kitchen so we’re keen to explore how much more produce we can grow ourselves, and explore new varieties to create new unique products! Beyond this, we want to expand our work with local farms and social gardens, continuing to support those who really care. At Little Swift we love hosting and whether people are coming by for a quick drink or settling in for the evening, we welcome everyone to come enjoy our curated selection of the finest drinks. 

Check out Little Swift on Instagram here.