The best ways to change an institution

A quick quiz question: "The English inn belongs to a world we have seen the last of". Who wrote this and when?

It is a commonly understood argument that pubs need to undergo change. In 2008, with fewer people going to pubs perhaps this is even more pressing. But how do you change an institution? How can pubs change?

My argument would be putting the customer at the centre of what you do to refresh the hospitality you offer. Let the wants and desires of your customers lead the changes and let's try to achieve some old-fashioned hospitality in a modern setting.

I have been into a pub opposite my work at least 50 times and no one there knows my name. If no one is going to talk to me, why should I go at all? There is a challenge here to all bar-staff and bar managers to be bartenders not just order takers.

This year it is very easy to talk ourselves into doom and gloom, but we have the bedrock of a well-loved institution that we can build on. We can rekindle this love by welcoming new pubgoers — families, females and lapsed visitors — who are all generally positive about the smoking ban. What have we actually done to invite them in? Everything from the outside of your pub to the cleanliness of the bathrooms to the range of drinks and food on offer sends out a signal of how welcoming you are of this new audience.

My final thought before giving you the answer to the quiz question is on quality — another cornerstone of any hospitality business.

An extensive quality audit in June has signalled that 88 million drinks post-mix servings will now be of better, fresher quality this year due to the smaller syrup boxes and shorter shelf-life we have introduced.

Helping the trade deliver hospitality with the highest quality standards is a challenge that we will continue to strive to deliver.

"The English inn belongs to a world we have seen the last of" — that is from the Caterer & Hotel-Keepers' Gazette (20 February 1928).