(Image: CONTRIBUTOR / NORTHERN ECHO)
When young entrepreneur Adem Kuzgun went on a trip to Los Angeles and experienced the Californian wellness café culture first hand, it got the juices flowing.
The 23-year-old already had some experience of starting a new venture in the bag, being one half of the duo who launched Darlington’s Zuu Bar in 2024.
But the businessman wanted to take the leap to the lifestyle and wellness sector, a trend that has sparked a generational shift in youngsters now swapping clubbing for cardio.
The former Egglescliffe School student is now weeks away from launching Nude, a “modern wellness café and lifestyle brand”, on Yarm High Street in the former Pollo takeaway.
Nude, which is set to open on Yarm High Street (Image: THE NORTHERN ECHO)
Adem said the new venture will be serving functional smoothies, matcha, specialty coffee, juices, and health-conscious food - but stressed it is “bigger than just serving drinks and food”.
He wants to create a space that brings together the community, making wellness part of everyday lives “in a way that feels accessible and exciting”.
“Nude came about after a recent trip to Los Angeles and seeing that there was a massive gap in the market on Teesside and specifically Yarm for something healthy”, Adem said.
Adem Kuzgun (Image: Adem Kuzgun)
“Nude to us is a stripped back take on being healthy, being fit, and being consistent, while not feeling so guilty if you want to indulge in something a bit more sweet.
“We will have guilt free sweets, a couple of different functional smoothies with things like collagen inside and electrolytes.
“Everything will be broken down with calories and macros so people know what they are putting into their bodies.”
Nude, which is set to open on Yarm High Street (Image: THE NORTHERN ECHO)
Travel lover Adem said that, following his trip to LA in May 2025, he decided he wanted to capitalise on the fitness and health surge.
He said: “We have seen a massive rise in people taking care of themselves.
“People are drinking a bit less - and even if they do, they will go for a 5k run on Sunday morning.
"It was just an idea last summer but we didn’t know where the perfect location would be.”
Adem, who grew up in Ingleby Barwick and now lives in Norton, said he went to look at a number of potential locations but didn’t feel the footfall would be right.
An opportunity then arose in Yarm.
A sign for Nude, in Yarm (Image: NUDE)
“Units in Yarm are very rare, so we had a chat with the owner of the unit to see what the plan was with it,” he said. “I had a look and fell in love with it straight away.
“Yarm is very sentimental to me, I went to school at Egglescliffe School and Yarm is our local high street. I saw so much potential with it - there is a really nice vibe.”
The shop, which was formerly home to Tomahawk’s Pollo takeaway and Greedy Ted’s pizza shop but has been closed for several years, is currently being ripped out.
Inside works to transform the former Pollo takeaway into Nude (Image: NUDE)
“It is a construction site at the moment, hopefully building work will be done in the next ten to 15 days and then hopefully we will have a pre launch event to give the team a trial run,” he said.
"We are planning on opening during the first week of November.”
Nude will employ between five and ten staff members and is set to be open everyday, with exact timings yet to be confirmed.
While this is Adem’s solo project, he is bringing one of his good friends Matthew Bancroft, who has a degree in sports science and nutrition, on board.
Concept art of Nude, in Yarm (Image: NUDE)
Nude will see Adem follow in the entrepreneurial footsteps of his family, with his dad AJ Kuzgun being the managing director of popular restaurant chain Al Forno.
He has since left Zuu Bar to focus on the project full time.
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“I have been working at Al Forno since I was 15 and now I am taking the risk to leave the family business to try to build something myself that I can be proud of,” he said.
“I am taking inspiration from things I have seen and loved overseas.
“I would love to grow it. We will get this year out of the way and let the Yarm site find its feet but we are looking at opening some more sites in 2027.”