Licensee to raffle £350,000 freehouse

A licensee has launched a raffle with a pub as the star prize after trying to sell the lease for more than a year.

Oceans Inns Company Ltd is giving people the chance to win the High Park Tavern in Ryde on the Isle of Wight by buying raffle tickets at £20 each.

Pub manager Sharon Milner came up with the idea and hopes to sell 50,000 tickets.

She said: "The market was just getting worse. Pubs and properties are just not moving at the moment. Nobody is interested in buying a lease. So I thought this was a brilliant idea."

She said she came up with the plan after hearing about a home owner in Devon who decided to raffle their property after failing to sell it.

The prize draw is to take place in July and Sharon believes the move could provide an opportunity for other struggling licensees.

"Hopefully this will help other pubs as we hope to raffle their leases for a fee through the website. It could be a great business venture if it all goes to plan," she said.

In December, The Publican​ reported that John Faulder, licensee of the Punch Taverns owned Filly Inn near Lymington, on the outskirts of the New Forest had taken similar steps to shift his lease.

In this case, the sixteenth century inn was on offer for the price of a £10 ticket for a pub quiz and two correct questions.

Sharon hopes that her move, in addition to beating the credit crunch, will stir up some more trade in the meantime.

"January and February are traditionally the quietest times of year but the publicity will probably get more people through the door."

For further details visit www.winapubraffle.com​