How a Scottish coffee shop turned into a restaurant group - and increased turnover by 150%
A business that started in a popular Scottish town has grown into a seven-venue restaurant group within the last year.
In a year when Scottish hospitality has been defined by rising costs, collapsing margins and near constant closures, a coffee shop first opened in Oban has quietly emerged as one of the country’s fastest-growing hospitality groups.
Launched on Oban harbour in 2019, Hinba now operates seven venues – four cafés, a bakery and two restaurants – across Glasgow and the west coast. The business has more than doubled in size in the past 18 months, employs over 50 staff and sells upwards of 350,000 coffees a year. Its turnover has grown 150% in the last year alone.
Founder Fergus McCoss believes the growth has been more about seizing opportunity than anything else.
He said: “Sites are closing every week as the industry’s at a real turning point. Margins are tighter than ever but there’s still a market there: people still want to go out for a great coffee or meal. That means there are opportunities everywhere. We just said yes when the right ones popped up.
“The last few years have been a whirlwind. While we’re primarily focused on consolidating what we have, and putting our own stamp on things, we’re still searching for a Glasgow roastery. Of course, we’ll never say no to the right opportunity.
“We can’t really do anything about NIC, rates, or inflation, so we don’t waste too much time worrying about it and instead control what we can control. All day, every day, we search for creative ways to deliver the quality people deserve while being a great place to work..”
After Oban, Hinba secured its first Glasgow site on Dumbarton Road in 2022. A year later, it opened a second West End café on Great Western Road.
It was last year things stepped up a gear, starting when James Aitken, owner of Us V. Them approached Fergus about the sale of his Sauchiehall Street venue, which now gives Hinba a footprint in the city centre.
Soon after, Hinba began looking to buy a bakery (after being repeatedly let down by suppliers shutting for weeks at a time). They entered talks with Mhairi Taylor, who owned both a bakery business in Hyndland and Zique's, a West End institution of more than two decades.
A few weeks after entering discussions, for the first time, Hinba wasn’t just running coffee shops but now owned a restaurant, and crucially, the building it sat in.
Rather than a complete overhaul, Zique’s has continued to operate as the popular neighbourhood brunch spot it’s always been while the team slowly puts its own stamp on the space.
And now, its portfolio is growing again with the recent acquisition of Eighty Eight in Finnieston, the restaurant next door to their first Glasgow café - marking their second move into restaurants.
Alongside expansion, Hinba has focused on making the operation resilient. The bakery – now supplying all venues – is at full capacity, while the team track wastage, forecast sales against weather, and bake and roast based on data rather than guesswork.
Mr McCoss said: “Hospitality businesses often run on instinct. I don’t think that’s enough anymore, the costs are too high. You need passion, but you also need to interrogate the numbers. We’re proud of the team we’ve built and want to provide opportunities for them to grow, so we have a responsibility to grow responsibly. We want to be around for a long time to come.”
Mr McCoss returned to Scotland before lockdown after almost a decade based in Palma de Mallorca while working on super yachts, crossing paths with the likes of Star Wars’ creator George Lucas. He runs the business with his wife, Ness, who oversees operations, finance and systems. During a busy period on the business front, the pair have also welcomed their first child.
On the rare days he’s not working, Mr McCoss can often be found in the West End, walking between sites with Ness, their son and their two German Shepherds. He still travels to Oban weekly to oversee roasting, but having most of the portfolio clustered in Glasgow’s West End means, for the first time, he can do much of it on foot.
“We don’t want to be on every high street,” he said. “But if it says Hinba on the door, we want you to know the coffee will be great, the food will be honest and made with care. Our biggest focus is earning people’s trust.
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