The New Inn, St Owen's Cross, Hereford

When experienced outside caterer Nigel Maud took over the leasehold of the New Inn in 2006, he was keen to build up the food side of the business and introduce outside catering. Having extended the pub's kitchen to cope with the extra trade he would be taking on, he launched

Innside Out in 2007 with impressive results. During the past year, his outside catering business has generated around £60,000 for the pub, with further increases expected now that he has taken on a business development co-ordinator. Advertising in Yellow Pages, on the pub's website and by word of mouth has paid

off and the business now caters for an average five functions a month using

the pub's chefs and kitchen, with an additional separate store and back-up kitchen down the road if the level of business requires it. Nigel says: "Introducing outside catering has pushed the pub's name forward. The benefits works both ways: people who like what we do at the pub ask if we do outside catering. And we always make sure that our clients are aware of the pub." With a GP of 72% on the outside business, returns are good. However, branching out into event catering does involve a lot of hard work and expense. Nigel explains: "Outside catering is not a cheap option to set up correctly. You will need crockery, cutlery, glasses, pots, pans, insulated boxes and possibly a van — and making sure your kitchen can cope costs money. Once you start transporting food, your business also becomes a higher-risk operation."