Punch pub deal done in just eight days

The latest Punch tenant to become a freeholder says his bank turned the deal around in just eight days.

Gary Kidd, with Dickie Cotterill and Tony Steele, now owns the freehold of the Fox & Barrel in Cotebrook, Tarporley, Cheshire.

The three licensees took on the lease back in April 2008, when the pub had been closed for six months. The first year's turnover was in excess of £1m, and the pub has already been recommended in the 2010 editions of the Good Pub Guide and the Good Food Guide.

Kidd initially enquired about buying the freehold in July 2008, before Punch invited offers from tenants, but was told the pubco wasn't selling. He tried again in August 2009, and got board approval for the deal on 15 August. After he had received the valuation and presented it to the bank, he went from the initial meeting to the drawdown of funds in just eight days.

They bought the freehold for an undisclosed sum, but Kidd said they paid roughly what Punch asked: "It was in line with our expectations. With the economic downturn, swapping rent for a mortgage makes excellent business sense."

He has arranged local ale to be supplied through Wheatwood, a brewery three miles from the pub.