Tuesday March 2nd

Cellar Magneval, one of Woking and Surrey’s best-loved destinations for wine, craft beer, cheese and coffee has changed hands – and its proud new owner Roland Foxcroft is busy keeping everyone safely stocked up before reopening again soon.

Its new owner Roland Foxcroft and five star sommelier Fernando Cubas have embarked on an exciting new journey to build upon past glories of this charming specialist wine destination and are already achieving great success.

With premium, often undiscovered, wines paired perfectly with delectable grazing platters for clients with exquisite French taste, Cellar Magneval is proving a big hit with local residents with a same-day free home delivery service.

Roland, who is originally from Hungary but grew up in Sussex and now lives in Surrey, says he seized the opportunity to invest in Cellar Magneval when previous owners Thierry and Jo decided it was time to pass on the reins.

“I came to work at Cellar Magneval last year and I just fell in love with the business and its romantic ambiance. I witnessed Cellar Magneval at its best when local people were popping in for a glass of wine and a chat, so when the previous owners signalled their intention to sell it was a unique opportunity for me to invest and bring the business into a new chapter.”

Passionate about investing in Woking’s future, Roland is proud to be a part of Woking’s growing local business community and is committed to its success.

“We’re dedicated to being a community-focused business in everything we do. We employ local people, we reinvest in the community and we personally meet all our customers which allows us to tailor our services and plan bespoke events. We’re also committed to bringing business to local suppliers and smaller vineyards.

“Woking’s business community is so supportive and here on Church Path we’re surrounded by inspirational local businesses like Boz’s Fruit & Veg and Jietta. I’m excited to immerse myself in everything Woking has to offer.” 

Focusing on premium wines and irresistible cheeses and saucissons, Roland is keen to expand Cellar Magneval’s offering and has plenty of exciting developments planned.

“Fernando and I have really hit the ground running and until we are able to safely open, we’re focusing on providing our customers with exciting virtual events as well as regular deliveries of quality wines,” Roland says.

“It can be difficult for businesses to source nice wines in tasting quantities or to organise the logistics of virtual wine tastings, but thanks to our strong local focus we’re excited to be bringing virtual wine tastings to our customers, allowing our brand new sommelier Fernando to share his knowledge of great wines.

“Behind the scenes we’re also working on some top-secret menu developments for when we are fully reopen!”

Though Cellar Magneval has a wide range of high quality wines, Woking’s residents definitely have their favourites.

“Our Crémant has been a real winner recently,” says Roland. It’s very popular because it’s a light French sparkling wine that is a little different to prosecco and cava but once people try it they tend to reorder it again. Our Fin Del Mundo malbec is also flying off the shelves – red wine has certainly been more popular during the winter.”

During what has been an extremely difficult time for many businesses, Roland is optimistic about the future.

“It has been a difficult time across the business spectrum, especially for hospitality outlets. However, I feel so privileged to be leading Cellar Magneval into a new era and I can’t wait until we can reopen safely and welcome our customers, old and new, back into this wonderful bar.”

Sustainability will also be a key theme.

“Improving our green credentials and reducing our carbon footprint is important to us,” Roland says.

“We already reuse all our packaging, we keep a close eye on our waste levels and we do our best to invest in local suppliers. As a business operating on a smaller scale compared with multi-national and national chains, it’s easier for us to focus on reducing, reusing and recycling and that’s a big priority for the years ahead.”

For more information about Cellar Magneval, visit www.cellarmagneval.com.

Love your wine? Share your favourites by tagging us in at #WeAreWoking.com or email us at hello@wearewoking.com.