Barracuda ops director to oversee new Punch division

Graham Jones, operations director at Barracuda, has joined Punch to oversee the roll out of Punch Pub Company's new managed concepts.

The company has reported that as many as 400 of its pubs may be converted to a bank of new concepts it has in development within its 835-strong managed division.

Jones has been at the helm of Punch Pub Company's new concept roll-out for two months.

These include "carvery plus" concept Roast Inn. The first site, the Sir Jack, opened in Rotherham, Yorkshire, ten days ago.

Managed boss Mike Tye said the brand aims to take around £35,000 and serve 3,000 covers a week.

Roast Inn price points are similar to Mitchells & Butlers' (M&B) Toby Carvery. The carvery costs £5 Monday to Friday before 5pm; £7.50 from 6pm to 10pm and £8.50 on Sundays.

Tye said the concept was "proving to have massive consumer appeal."

Punch Pub Company has also opened two gastropubs, labelled Pub & Kitchen Company in two former Chef & Brewer sites.

The sites are Ye Olde White Swan in Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire, and the Feathers in Taplow, near Slough, Berkshire.

Tye said that the gastropubs are positioned to be of slightly higher quality than M&B's Project S.

The first evolved Chef & Brewer has opened at the Britannia in Northampton following a £100,000 refurbishment.

Internal colour changes, outside graphic changes and improved external areas are among the changes.

Five pubs are also now trading as value concept Fayre & Square. The sites have been converted from Two for One pubs, with between £30-£40,000 spent on each conversion.

The company is about to convert its first well-invested Two for One into a Fayre and Square. Tye said the company had focused on low spend conversions of un-invested sites until now.

Generally, the company plans a saving of around 30% per square metre. Punch plans to invest between £100-£150,000 on refurbishing sites as compared to between £250-£400,000 in the past.

Tye said:"£75,000 has made a really big difference to sites."

He added that Punch Pub Company's Two for One concept was "not right for the market" but would be evolved. The company was seeing a 12% decline in sales at its bottom 15% of pubs and 4% in its family pubs.

Punch Pub Company also hopes to launch one or two more new concepts before Christmas. Among the concepts that Spirit hopes to launch are: Flaming Grill, Bedrock Local, Tavern, "ideal" local and Metro Heritage.