About
The Journey : The classic "About" timeline of Barti
How Barti Came To Be.
2010. Jonathan Williams is Homesick
Staring out of his landlocked Swindon office window, working in sustainability, but pining for Pembroke and his passions, cooking, story telling and the sea.
Captivated by harvesting wild laver seaweed at his local beach, from the preservation of the last drying hut. Jonathan acquires a taste for the seaweed himself and so inspired, he starts ‘The Pembrokeshire Beach Food Company’ trading his seaweed lobster rolls, sea plant salads and beach burgers at ‘Café Mor’. Jonathan quits his day job in Swindon.
2012-2016. ‘Cafe Mor’ Wows Crowds With Seaweed Inspired Menu
The seaweed inspired menu is a hit and wins gold at the British Street Food Awards and Café Mor caters for the athletes in the Olympic village, Glastonbury & other major UK events. Café Mor wins a permanent trade spot at home, where historical seaweed pickers worked from. Fran Barnikel joins on a temp graduate placement. Growth Continues.
His sideline of sea inspired condiments and crackers get traction and are commonly found in local shops.
2017. BARTI DDU RUM IS BORN
Jonathan, takes two weeks off after the birth of his second daughter & returns to HQ with excitement & a new business idea, combining his favourite things; Seaweed, a great local story, this time a pirate 'Barti Ddu' & RUM. He'd already begun developing the flavour profile and sourcing expertly distilled rum from the Caribbean. Barti Ddu Rum was born.
Having always been a rum girl, it didn’t take much persuasion for Fran to get involved. Fran becomes a partner & later full time Managing Director.
2019. Building A Brand
Barti Spiced Rum begins to really take off in Wales, especially as a new wave of rum lovers comes crashing in over the slowly plateauing gin craze. Barti builds itself as a brand for those much like Jonathan Williams. Driven by passion, creative, eco conscious and enthralled by the outdoors and what tales of adventure they have to offer, and are yet to facilitate.
2020. Barti Rum Is Grateful To Its Loyal Following
Despite the obstacles of the pandemic Barti secures itself as the third best selling spirit in the portfolio of the biggest regional food service wholesaler in Wales, behind only mainstream brands Gordon’s Gin and Smirnoff Vodka. Amy Yamazaki joins the team heading up trade sales and expanding Barti’s presence in shops and bars across the UK.
2023. Continuing to Grow, Prioritising Sustainability and Innovation.
As the Barti Rum and Pembrokeshire Beach Food business’ continue to grow, Jonathan is now spear heading world leading research into the viability of seaweed as a carbon capture mechanism, something which could be a global game changer, and in the least, will make Barti Rum a carbon negative company in not too many years to come.
2024. More products, more awards and more outlets.
The tail end of 2023 saw "the great Barti Cream draught" in which we launched what we thought would be a little special edition for Christmas on the website. People. went. mad. The plant based dairy cream liqueur alternative was so popular we had to limit sales to wholesalers and web customers alike. Needless to stay it remained a firm part of the range and by the following December both the cream and the original spiced rum were available to buy in Tesco in Wales. The Cream managed to pick up multiple awards at the World Drink Awards and the rum won "Best Rum" at the great British Food awards.
2025. Weathered, learned, and still standing.
Our brilliant MD, Doc Roc, welcomed a beautiful baby boy and while she focused on becoming a mum for the second time, founder Jonathan was pulled back in from the Point House to steer the Barti ship.
We somehow launched Barti Rum Ice Pops, Barti Salt (a ridiculous idea that shouldn’t work but does), and Old Barti & The Sea, where you broke the website on launch day.
Cheers to 2025. A year of beautiful chaos — a storm that reminded us what matters and what holds firm.
2026. Bars Bars Bars. Cans Cans Cans.
The 2026 team are stronger than an Old Barti no ice and with JW at the helm they blazed the summer season and busy event calendar. Barti RTD's launch with a massive bang, the Sea Buckthorn wins multiple awards off the bat!
Fran was welcomed back from mat leave to find not one, not two, but three mobile bars had been or were being created, watch out for them setting sail in 2027!
I just wanted to make the best tasting spiced rum in the world, so I could drink it. The decision was as simple as that.
— Jonathan Williams - Founder