We bought a £200 abandoned horse box and spent £10k turning it into a cocktail bar

Two brothers turned an abandoned horse box into a bar in £10k renovation.

Dan and Jon Trainer, from Aston in Kent, say they’ve always been close and loved to socialise especially when it involved drinking. They attended their sister's wedding in 2019, which had a horse box bar - sparking the idea of starting their own business.

The brothers paid £200 for a horse box which they found at a farm in the midlands and spent £10,000 renovating it.

The brothers’ business, The Thirsty Farrier, came to a halt during Covid but they started doing online cocktail masterclasses, before setting up their own pop up bar at the Southbank Centre, London in 2023. The team had been using a horse box built for two horses, however, from 2023, they have used four-horse boxes for more bar space.

The bar can be booked for weddings, birthdays and general parties. Dan, Jon and the team also hope to branch out to other UK hotspots in the future.

Dan, 29, said: "We mostly specialise in cocktails like mojitos, margaritas, espresso martinis but also do other drinks like beers, prosecco and wine.

“A lot of people like the fact that we make our drinks from scratch. We came up with cocktail classics but with a twist."