Take action to create a good news story

Interesting article from Stephen Oliver last week regarding the Campaign for Real Ale.

While I have been critical in the past of Camra's stance on "non-core business" you have to applaud their support for cask ale. Maybe if we were all a little bit more joined up it would be great to look at cask ale the same way the French consider wine. Recently when the French Government announced it was considering increasing tax on wine there were national protests. Just imagine if we could galvanise support like that for cask ale in this country?

In contrast, nothing pleases me more than to hear a success story, like the ones the Morning Advertiser are crying out for now, but we just don't get them. Don't get me wrong, they're most definitely out there.

I spoke to two licensees last week, one after Tuesday lunch when the licensee had just finished serving 70 customers and one on Saturday night after serving 100. Despite being "done in" both had a smile on their faces. They have passion for their businesses and they know that any success they make is their own and nobody else's.

So why don't we hear more of the same? It's about a pub's priorities. Those that are busy and successful concentrate on being busy and successful. They have little time for anything else. The doom and gloom stories, can, I'm afraid to say, in the main be down to bad management, poor standards and less than adequate business sense.

You can bet the successful pubs look at their costs every week.

In comparison, the less successful ones check their costs only when their accountant or regional manager advises them to and that's only if they have one of these professional advisors!

You can be certain successful pubs manage their margins better than everyone else, making sure they have the highest margin products positioned on their bar, within their menus and on their wine lists. They're buying in bulk to maximise the margin and they're reducing their choice so they can buy more of the products to sell cheaply.

It's not rocket science, it's business sense and the sooner some hosts see that, the more success stories we'll have to publish in the MA.

And before I cause any further offence when was the last time you really took a look at your pub, inside and out? When was the last time you emphasised the need for genuine customer service from your staff? You can bet your life your customers will tell you if your toilets are clean or your gardens tidy or your staff are good — have you asked them? There really is no excuse. The customer makes the choice to visit you and then makes the choice whether to repeat the experience. So don't take umbrage at this article. Think and take action and then the MA can have its stories and we'll have an industry with a long and happy future.

David Elliott is managing director of Greene King Pub Partners​