Join Friends of the Piehouse as they try and raise the funds to keep hold of our favourite venue.
FEATURING PDA (secret headliners) - can you guess who it is?!
Taliable - balaclava moshpit mayhem
Piglet - trans queer angry emo SEL local legends
Folk of the round Table - resident piehouse family!
Liv Wynter - host of resident piehouse night How To Catch a Pig
Rosie Alena - piehouse legend and co-op star
Prinx Silver - himbo with a heart from Lese Majeste and Friends of the Joiners Arms
Seymour Semen Stainz - UKs most talented goth (poetry)
Oedipussi Rex - beareded drag barbarian
Sigi Moonlight - resident Pecs AND Bitten Peach artist !
Richard Melanin the Third - drag king royalty !
Goat Girl DJs - will they play a remix of their own new songs?!?!?!
URLAmelia - piehouse resident dnb representative
DJ Areola Grande Latte - dyke pop bangers to transport you to ibiza
and MORE TBA.
FRIENDS OF THE PIEHOUSE UPDATES
What happened to the previous fundraiser?
The previous fundraiser was started by Matchstick Limited, the company that runs Matchstick Piehouse, and was intended to cover the rental arrears owed by Matchstick Limited to the landlords. Although the fundraiser nearly reached its goal of £36K, we came to understand the debt was ultimately more than this, and after seeking legal advice the directors of Matchstick Limited decided to file for insolvency. As there was no feasible route for Matchstick Limited to continue operating the venue, the money raised had to be refunded.
What happened next?
Then, Lenny and Liv spoke with the existing staff who expressed their desire to become a workers co-op and save the venue - and Friends of the Piehouse was born! We are a group made up of Piehouse staff, resident artists, and community members, and we want the Piehouse to be the same venue you’ve always known and loved, but with the space being utilised even more and with better workers rights and stability for the staff and creatives who operate within it.
Lenny and Liv agreed to step in to support this goal by initiating negotiations with landlords to secure a new lease for the venue, and supporting the team through their transition towards a workers co-op. Lenny already has huge co-op venue success with Sister Midnight and Liv Wynter will be contributing their 10+ years of experience as an community organiser, project manager, and artist.
What happens now?
Since December we’ve been working hard behind the scenes to push forward this vision for the new Piehouse, and we are hopeful that we will have concrete and positive news to share with you all in the coming weeks. In the meantime, we need you - our community - to help us reignite the fundraiser and send a message to the world that there is hope for the Piehouse to be saved.
What will the money be spent on?
As we are a brand new legal entity with no ties to Matchstick Limited, we are basically starting from scratch:
We need to:
Buy equipment for the piehouse including sound, lighting, bar equipment, fridges, sofas, chairs, etc.
Fix any issues within the piehouse such as the broken toilets etc.
Initial rent and deposit payments
Paying some initial staff time, particularly training and co-op meetings.
Paying some of Lenny and Liv’s time (which up until now has been pro-bono)
What is in place to prevent this happening again?
We are in receipt of a lot of support from Music Venue Trust, the GLA, Co-operatives UK, and Lewisham Council, all of whom are supporting us to develop a new, resilient business model for the Piehouse that will ensure the venue is self-sustaining for the long run (meaning we won’t be reliant on continual crowdfunding to keep the doors open). BUT we do need your support to fundraise enough to secure a lease for the venue, get the new workers co-op off the ground, deliver training, develop new audiences and bring in new nights and collectives to bring the Piehouse back to the thriving creative anti-capitalist hub that it formerly was.
What can I do to help?
But we can only do this with your support, so please let's give it all we’ve got and try and get the new fundraiser back up to that £30K target. We will be throwing a fundraising party at the Fox and Firkin on March 17th featuring loads of bands who have regularly played the Piehouse, and we hope to bring all the community together to fundraise and be with each other.