Django’s & The Patch – A Connection in High Wycombe’s Old Town

High Wycombe’s Old Town Hall is one of those grand buildings we often take for granted. It is elegant and grand, with a small clock tower protruding from its roof. Built in 1904, it never quite got the life it was designed for. Due to budget constraints, the north wing that was initially planned was never built, meaning much of the civic work continued at the nearby Guildhall.  

As a result, the beautiful town hall became the town’s premier public assembly hall and entertainment venue. And that’s pretty much how things have been ever since. Big names have played here: The Rolling Stones, The Who, and Joy Division, and in 1992, it was incorporated into the Wycombe Swan, the theatre and entertainment complex. But in the last few years, two businesses have moved in and have come to define a modern kind of gathering: Django’s Coffee Shop and a Patch coworking space. 

A Corner of Calm 

Walk through the doors of Django’s and there’s a shift. The tempo slows. The air is filled with the kind of scent that suggests someone’s been paying attention to the beans, the baking, and the background music.

It’s not pretentious. It’s not sterile. It’s relaxed, calming – precisely what you want when you need to dip out of the manic world. You’ll find groups swapping stories over flat whites, freelancers fixing typos between sips, and some just gazing, because, well, why not?

Django’s isn’t trying to be anything other than exactly what it is: a space that works because it welcomes. It’s simple and homely – not cluttered that many coffee shops tend to be. Interesting fact: Django’s began life as a coffee van that once stood just outside the Eden, High Wycombe’s main shopping centre. It was a huge hit, and the rest, as they say, is history.  

Django’s is run by Melina Lympoudi and Chris Evangelidis, who moved to the UK from Greece in 2015. Former Primary school teacher Melina said, “It all started 10 years ago when we got our dog, Django. We always said that when Chris would manage to have his own coffee business, we would name it after our Django!”

“Patch has given us a great opportunity to put Django under a roof, and we are really excited for the future. We take great pride in what we do at Django’s and always aim to treat our customers with high-quality products.”

The coffee is good. Always has been and comes from just down the road the Marlow based roastery and coffee shop, Coopers, just 5 miles away, while the tea comes from the Chiltern-based Two Spoons tea company. This is very much a local business selling the best of the local area.  

The almond croissant is a delicious naughty that’s totally worth being naughty for. As is the banana loaf. In fact, it’s all good, but that’s not really the point. You come back because of how it feels to be in the space. There’s a sense that Django’s was never just about caffeine. It was always about connection.

Work that doesn’t Feel Like Work

Through an archway beside the tills lies Patch, Django’s quiet twin. Walk through, and you’ll find a small hallway and a spiral staircase spiralling upwards. If Django’s is sleek, modern, chic, this part of the building recalls its earlier days; refined, elegant—more history. 

Climbing the stairs, you’ll come into Patch’s primary workspaces. Less chatter, more concentration. It’s a coworking space, yes, but that barely scratches the surface. What they’ve built here feels closer to a collective. An open plan think tank with caffeine on tap.

The open desks, comfy booths, and huddle-ready corners all say one thing: this is a place to get things done. But productivity here isn’t driven by pressure – it’s powered by shared purpose. Whether it’s a one-person start-up or a five-person agency, there’s a mutual hum for what it takes to show up and create something of your own.

And in between that grind? Little moments. A hallway chat. An offer to proofread. A nod over the communal fruit bowl. That’s the magic of Patch. It’s not just where people work. It’s where they belong while they work.

Patch now has five locations around the UK: Bournemouth, York, Chelmsford, Twickenham, and High Wycombe. Think WeWork without the megalomania that brought down an empire. Simple co-working spaces where people can get on with what’s really needed. And in those final three locations, you’ll find your very own Django’s. Yes, that little coffee van has come an awful long way. 

Reviving the Town

High Wycombe has seen many changes, closures, and competition from big box stores and online everything. Like many towns around the UK, there is sometimes a slightly forlorn, worn look as you wander the town’s streets. 

Town staples have closed. Generic chain stores thrive. Anything relating to gamling tends to do well. Ruby Moon, a gift shop on Castle Street open for 26 years, permanently shut in April 2025, citing a tough Christmas season and a burglary, while a small toy model shop, Collectables R Us, also closed after nearly 15 years of business. It’s not a great time for small businesses. 

But Django’s and The Patch offer something Amazon can’t: a face-to-face hello. A space that lives and breathes, not just sells and ships. More than that, they’ve given locals a reason to linger. And in doing so, they’ve begun to restitch the fabric of the old town. Not by trying to recreate the past, but by building something new on top of it.

There’s no single demographic that defines who comes here. It’s multigenerational, multi-purpose, and all the better for it. You might see a student revising, an artist sketching, a dad feeding a toddler, or a solo writer hammering away on deadline. It’s a microcosm of the modern town – everyone welcome, no pressure to perform.

That’s what makes them a third space in the truest sense. Not work. Not home. But something just as vital. Somewhere that holds the small rituals of daily life and gives them weight. Somewhere that keeps the pulse of a place alive.

And for High Wycombe, that might just be the most important thing of all.