Momo in talks to roll out Jongleurs comedy clubs

All smiles: Momo is in talks with operators to roll out Jongleurs comedy clubs

Momo Leisure, the firm run by former Regent Inns executives David Elphick and Jez King, is in talks with around six late-night bar operators about rolling out Jongleurs comedy clubs into their outlets, M&C Report has learnt.

Momo is to open its second Jongleurs bar under a joint venture with Yellowhammer and Jongleurs Comedy Clubs at the operator’s Sports Cafe in London’s Haymarket on 11 May. The first opened last month at Yellowhammer’s Bliss club on Birmingham’s Broad Street.

Elphick told M&C Report the arrangement with Yellowhammer is “much more of a partnership, a joint venture, than a residence”.

Separately, Momo operates two Jongleurs sites directly under franchise, in Nottingham and Bristol. Elphick said Momo plans to operate four or five Jongleurs directly within the next four to five years.

In the meantime, Elphick has had discussions with about half a dozen bar operators about a partnership deal along the lines of the Yellowhammer and Jongleurs JV. “We have a lot of interest,” he said. “A lot of operators have unused spaces. Some of them can be ideal for converting into comedy clubs.”