Punch surprises us all again, says Andrew Pring

Punch's latest move away from life as a pure pubco has got more than a few heads scratching in the trade.

Everyone knows that Giles Thorley and his team would not have spent £35m on a half-share in wholesaler Matthew Clark without having a clear strategy in place. But no one outside Punch has yet worked out what it is.

On the face of it, there's a simple logic at work.

Beer sales through the Punch estate will dip after July 1. Soft drinks, wines and spirits are likely to rise.Ergo, Punch gets involved with a group that specialises in offering soft drinks, wines and spirits and tries to incorporate it into its offer to licensees.

Everyone knows that Giles Thorley and his team would not have spent £35m on a half-share in wholesaler Matthew Clark without having a clear strategy in place.​

And the Matthew Clark volumes will be useful when negotiating more discount from Punch suppliers.

A little more thought punches big holes in that simple theory. Most Punch lessees aren't tied for soft drinks, wines and spirits.

It's often the one area of their business in which they can do something without Punch taking its slice. And many of them buy these products very cheaply from Matthew Clark already.

So it's going to take a very sweet deal indeed for a non-tied Punch licensee to sign away his rights and take Matthew Clark products through Punch, which are bound to become more expensive - otherwise why would Punch tolerate its wholesaler continuing to operate at its traditionally very low margins?

Then there's the issue of other pubcos that deal with Matthew Clark. How will they feel, knowing its sales data may find its way into rival Punch's hands? And will they feel comfortable knowing that doing business with Matthew Clark profits Punch?

Wholesaling is a very difficult business that operates on slender margins. How can it improve Punch's reputation or profits to own a half-share in one that was for sale because it had been finding life so tough? No doubt, in years to come, the move will be hailed as a master-stroke. But for the moment, the industry keeps scratching its head.

Greene King has bowed to pragmatism and restored Harvey's Best Bitter to the Lewes Arms.

It's a tough decision, given that its local lessees and tenants can't sell Harvey's, but the right one in the circumstances. Now it is free to move on and show that a major brewer and pubco can be just as much an adornment to the area as Harvey's itself.

Given its beers and people, and some open minds in Lewes, that should be perfectly possible.