R and A Global Store in Brighton refused an alcohol licence

R and A Global Store, at 17 Preston Road, Brighton, wanted to sell alcohol from 9am to 11pm daily as part of a specialist offering for the African and Caribbean community.

A Brighton and Hove City Council licensing panel, made up of three councillors, rejected the application after a hearing last month.

Preston Road is in a part of Brighton where new off-licences are usually refused because of concerns about antisocial behaviour, drink-related crime and nuisance.

Rigobel Fokou, 43, a director of R and A Global, has a licence for his business AfrikMark, across the road at 4 Preston Road, but wants to merge the shops on to the larger site.

At least three other licence applications for the premises at 17 Preston Road have been refused or withdrawn because of its troubled history when it was known as International Food and Wine.

And in October 2020, when it was trading as A Nifty Store, illicit cigarettes were found on sale in the shop.

The premises’ history and the council’s licensing policy underpinned objections from Sussex Police and the council’s licensing team.

At the licensing panel hearing on Thursday 14 April, Mr Fokou said that it was “unfair” to cite the previous operators’ poor record because he had no links with them.

Mr Fokou’s solicitor Winston Brown, of Brown and Co Solicitors, said that R and A Global was not the type of shop to attract passing trade. It was a food store focusing on Caribbean and African customers.

Councillors rejected the application for a drinks licence

The panel were concerned that if Mr Fokou was granted a licence for R and A Global, he could effectively turn the current AfrikMark shop into an off-licence.

Alternatively, he could sell the lease so that another trader could open an off-licence there.

The panel said: “The main issue for the panel is whether a further premises selling alcohol will have a detrimental effect on the area … and whether exceptional circumstances have been shown to depart from the (council’s) policy.

“The panel believes the concerns raised by the responsible authorities and local residents in relation to this application are extremely valid.

“A further premises selling alcohol for consumption off the premises is likely in our opinion to add to the problems of public nuisance and antisocial behaviour in the area and thus undermine the licensing objectives.”

The decision notice suggested further consideration and consultation to explore whether Mr Fokou giving up the licence for 4 Preston Road would count as “exceptional circumstances” to allow for a future licence application.