Taking the innside into the out

Punch Taverns has devised operational plans for all its 400 pubs in Scotland to supply retailers with effective smoking-ban strategies.

A special Smoking Action Group - a working committee consisting of key personnel - set up 18 months ago, has developed a robust response to the new legislation.

It believes it has left no stone unturned to provide licensees across its estate with the best possible advice and support packages.

The company has developed three separate "working pub models" to suit the location,

environment and spare land availability of each outlet.

Its "Outside Inn" concept provides pubs with extensions to the main building, but retains 50% of the wall area as open space to comply with the new legislation.

The "Smoking Garden" project involves a range of summer house-style constructions, pavilions and covered decking areas to enhance pubs that already have beer gardens or other open space to utilise.

The third category involves the simple use of awnings, predominantly sited at the front of landlocked and tenement style pubs which have no land at their disposal.

Punch regional director Sue Allen said licensees were working hard to make the most of a situation, which had been forced on them.

But she admitted that second guessing what would actually happen after next Sunday was

virtually impossible.

"Obviously it depends very much on the reaction of smoking customers in our pubs," Allen said, "but we have pulled out all the stops to help retailers mitigate the worst of any trading downturn.

"I think the good thing is this new law has arrived with the approach of spring and many of the schemes we have devised for our pubs can take advantage of warmer weather. But the big challenge may come in the autumn and the advent of winter which will test the mettle of many smokers," she said.

Punch executives have travelled extensively across Southern Ireland to weigh up the outcome of the country's smoking ban.

"The one thing that hit home was that those licensees who had made a determined effort to devise ways of combating the ban were the ones who had ridden the storm best," said Allen.

"That is why we were determined to get our own strategies in place very soon after the Scottish ban was announced and I believe we were definitely ahead of the game," she added.

Allen says that planning has been a nightmare, which means many pubs will simply not have schemes ready by the time the ban begins.

"Councils are introducing new by-laws ad lib, which change planning procedures and, in any case, council staff up and down the country are simply not ready and are snowed under with the extra work.

"We are as ready as we can be, but due to the red tape and bureaucracy a lot of pubs still have to have their plans finalised," she said.

Case study: the Kind Man's, Renfrew, Renfrewshire

On the face of it the Kind Man's at Renfrew, Renfrewshire, is the sort of pub that stands to lose heavily from this weekend's smoking ban.

Trade is 100% wet and licensee Andy McFadyen estimates a good half of his regular customers are smokers.

But a £35,000 investment in new garden facilities at the rear of the town-centre hostelry could throw McFadyen a vital lifeline and retain the bulk of his smoking regulars.

The newly-installed smokers' summerhouse is set to provide customers who want to light up with an easily-accessible refuge to indulge their habit.

More than that, McFayden also hopes the garden venue will actually boost business during the warmer summer months.

"We had to do a lot of thinking when the ban was first announced, but we knew trying to launch a food service was not an option," he said. "We have tried food before and it never worked so we were forced to look at other things and a smokers' garden was the obvious choice."

The summer house is open on all sides but is fitted with heaters, lighting and furniture, which extends to a full open area on decking at the front of the building.

The whole area has been attractively landscaped and the delighted publican admits the scheme has given the pub a whole new dimension.

"The area at the back of the pub was dead space, but revitalising it could just be our salvation when the ban kicks in. We are going to add parasols in the spring and we also intend to look after any potential security or disorder problems by installing CC-TV," he said.

McFadyen negotiated an extension to his lease with Punch to make it possible to invest in the new garden and planning consent from Renfrewshire council was also expedited with the minimum of difficulty.

Running costs have been carefully evaluated and the energy-friendly heaters cost a mere 19p per hour to run.

As the Kind Man's is the only pub in the centre of Renfrew that offers any sort of beer-garden facility, McFadyen hopes it will give the pub a real point of difference although, like most pubs, the Kind Man's is waiting with apprehension for customer reaction to the smoke ban.

"Nobody has said they are definitely not coming in any more, so we are hoping for the best," said McFadyen. "But it's going to be a difficult time for the trade, particularly in the first few months of the ban. However, with summer approaching we hope things will eventually settle down."

McFadyen is already devising signage to market and advertise the new garden so customers and passers-by are fully aware there is an option for smokers.

And Punch business development manager Michael Thomas believes the garden could mitigate most of any trade downturn.

"The Kind Man's is the type of pub that is most at risk from the ban, as it is located in an area that is predominantly working class, does not serve food and attracts a mainly drinking population," said Thomas.

"Hopefully, what we have done here will keep all the regulars happy and even attract new customers," he said.

Case study: the Crown, Thornhill, Sterling

Trade at the Crown in Thornhill, Sterling, is 60:40 food-led, but licensee Peter Mulholland is taking no chances of the smoking ban damaging his trade.

Contractors are due to apply the finishing touches to the pub's new smoking hut before the ban becomes law this Sunday. And Mulholland is hoping that the new facilities will entice both smokers and non-smokers into the pub.

"Nobody can second-guess what is going to happen after Sunday, so you have just got to plan for every eventuality," he said.

"Although we are food led, about 80% of our customers smoke, so it was obvious we had to provide outdoor facilities for them. The smoking hut has been built in our original beer garden and will provide heaters, lights and furniture for our customers and the whole area will be attractively landscaped."

He added: "There is a view to die for from the garden so we are hoping to derive a major benefit from our investment.

"It's a great vantage point and we will be offering facilities that will enable customers to enjoy a drink and a smoke and take in the beautiful countryside."

The licensee says the vast majority of his smoking customers are against the ban but reveals that only a handful have said they will not come into the pub after Sunday.

"At the end of the day people visit pubs to have a drink or enjoy a meal and smoking is really a secondary activity.

"I think as long as pubs provide some sort of facility for smokers they will escape the worst effects of the ban. But the better the facilities the more likely customers will be to use them and there is already a lot of proof that well-designed beer gardens are a major trade benefit.

"We are hoping what we have provided here will encourage customers of either persuasion. The idea was to offer something that would provide a talking point so we hope we have managed that," he added.