A new wine bar could open in Sandwich as soon as June after Dover District Council granted a licence for it to sell alcohol.

Wine importer Cristiano Maiello and interior designer Stephen Fairfax, of Divino London, were given the go-ahead at a licensing sub-committee meeting in Whitfield on Monday last week.

They have now started work to transform 60 King Street, a listed building, into a new wine bar, cafe and delicatessen.

Mr Fairfax said: “We told them that we just wanted to create something really lovely with a slightly different atmosphere.

“We had a few objections but I’d say 80% of them were about traffic, parking problems and smoking in the streets, but they were things that we can’t do anything about.

“Sandwich is renowned for tricky parking and people do smoke. It’s not going to make a difference to the area.”

The pair, who run a wine and spirits shop online, are now embarking on making the interiors, using Mr Fairfax’s expertise.

He said: “It’s going to be fairly bespoke and unusual but in keeping with the interior’s fixtures and fittings. It will be very sympathetic.”

Mr Fairfax said they will be spending “a nice amount to give it the wow factor”.

They hope to open it in six to eight weeks but are not setting themselves a time limit.

Once open, they will offer cakes and coffee as well as wine and Prosecco which Mr Maiello’s Italian business partners are already specially selecting to be imported.

They will also put on wine-tasting evenings.

Mr Fairfax said: “We are very excited and really looking forward to doing this.

“We’ve had such amazing support and feedback from the people that live in Sandwich.”

The property has previously been a bookshop and a delicatessen.

A Dover District Council spokesman said: “We can confirm that the licence was granted with conditions attached.

“A notice of determination will be sent out to all parties and the minutes published at a later date.”