Alan Shepherd: opportunity knocks

They thought Alan Shepherd was mad when he gave up his job to set up Bespoke Inns. And for a while he felt the same, he admits to Phil Mellows.

Apparently, at least this is what Alan Shepherd heard, the Derby Telegraph sub-editor's original idea for the headline on the company profile was: "Are these people mad?"

You can see why. Forty businesses closing every week, the economic downturn, smoking ban, cheap supermarket booze, the pubco tie — an industry outsider must wonder what kind of a nutcase would start running pubs in the middle of all that.

And it's a snappier headline than the one they finished up with ("Opening time signals rebirth of pubs where investment simply ran dry"). However, it does pretty accurately tell the story of Shepherd's firm, Bespoke Inns.

Shepherd left his job as head of Marston's freetrade in the east of England a little over a year ago to become one of many who thought they might exploit the "fire sale" that was being forced on heavily indebted pubcos.

"I used to make so many other people rich and thought I should have a go at it myself while the opportunity was there. The sort of prices that were on offer won't come around again in our lifetime. For me, it's a case of making this work or going back into corporate life. I'd regret it for the rest of my days if I hadn't given it a try."

He teamed up with old friend Heidi Taylor, who had a handy skills mix covering both interior design and catering, and found a "Dragon",

those creatures formerly known as angels, with cash to invest — a "local businessman" whose identity re-mains a secret.

"While the market was taking a dip the idea was to take advantage of bargains, to look at run-down tenancies and see whether we could make a go of them by investing in kitchens, conservatories and so on.

"Our investor gave us six months to show him it could work before he'd put in more money — which was scary."

How Bespoke Inns started​

They quickly picked up four pubs from Punch for £1m, "way less than half-price", and now have seven in operation around the East Midlands. They're making a living — typically doubling previous turnover — and the mystery benefactor is seeing returns on the property.

We're sitting in the Green Dragon at Willington, Derbyshire, one of the ex-Punch pubs. It's a traditional village local in expansive grounds. Bespoke took it over from a holding company, smartened it up, brought in a new chef, added a couple more handpumps and put on live music. A pub that was taking £3,500 a week last year is now taking £10,000.

And there's more to come. Shepherd has £150,000 to spend on extending the trading area down onto the grassy area beside the canal, which is an exciting prospect.

"This community needs a decent pub," he says, showing some feeling for a part of the world that he obviously knows well and has been getting to know even better over the past year.

The nature of the Bespoke estate, small as it is, and the business model it has adopted, means that Shepherd and Taylor are extremely hands-on. As the name of the company suggests, each pub is different to the next and each makes different demands on them. Keeping on top of the quality and standards they're trying to reach means a lot of travelling around, a lot of tweaking.

Plans​

So while the aim is still to reach a dozen or 15 pubs, further expansion will probably have to wait until the existing houses are running at their best. And besides, as Shepherd says: "The opportunities now are not as good as they were this time last year."

"We've got to do a lot ourselves," he explains. "So it's difficult for us at the moment to step back and look at the future.

"We've not got it right everywhere yet, and we're learning all the time. But what we are confident about is that the approach we're taking, of investing in these pubs to turn them around, is correct.

"Look at the working men's clubs round here. They are dying for want of investment.

"We want control, we want to set the standards, push the boundaries. We're incredibly critical of our own work. But this will be the best pub in the area by a mile."

As well as the Green Dragon, Bespoke's success stories so far also include the Anchor at Newhall, Derbyshire, where a new kitchen, new cellar and extension have moved turnover from £2,500 to £5,000 a week, and the Copper Hearth at Stapenhill, Staffordshire, where a £14,000 garden and a wall to separate the lounge from the sports bar has also helped double turnover.

It's a similar tale at the White Hart at Clowne, near Chesterfield, Derbyshire, a pub that Shepherd had his doubts about but kept on because of the quality of the young tenant, 25-year-old James Speight.

Latest addition, the Cross Keys Inn at Turnditch, Derbyshire, is a swish, modern gastropub trading 60% in favour of food.

The estate is completed by the Brickmakers at Anslow, Staffordshire, and the Crown in Newhall, while the Cock Inn, in Mugginton, Derbyshire, is closed awaiting a refurbishment and re-launch.

Different models​

But what makes this project more complicated is that "bespoke" doesn't just refer to the pub itself. The seven businesses are run under at least three different models according to what suits them. They include pubs directly managed by Bespoke, pubs let to tenants on a traditional-type agreement, and pubs let on an experimental turnover-share tenancy based on a similar scheme invented by Shepherd's old bosses at Marston's.

Experience would suggest that, in such a small company, one of these will out, but for now Shepherd is content that they are all working well and accepts that such complexity is in the spirit of Bespoke.

"What makes the difference between whether we run it as a tenancy or as a managed house is the bottom line. And here at the Green Dragon, for instance, we have had to change things dramatically and we need a manager in here we can tell what to do.

"The tenancies are where we've taken over pubs and kept existing agreements, and the turnovershare element works well for us because we can monitor the business on a weekly basis through the EPoS system. They're half-managed really."

Having already had some testing challenges, Shepherd is aware he's on "a huge learning curve, and it will last for another couple of years".

There was an eighth pub, the Quay in Leicester, the former Everards brewery flagship, which Bespoke ran for a few months before Tesco appeared with "an offer we couldn't refuse" for the site. Telling the staff they were out of a job was his worst moment so far.

"Our lives have been consumed by this," he goes on. "We work on the frontline. We spend our weekends in the pubs getting to know our customers. One day we'll be able to sit back with a glass of whisky, but it's been so hands-on."

So about that headline. There was some truth in it?

"Yes, I thought I was mad when we started this. I still do sometimes."

My kind of pub​

"I am a great fan of the Monkey Tree in West Bridgford, Nottingham, which is run by Great Northern Inns, who are obviously quality operators. But obviously the Green Dragon is way up there.

"We created it out of nothing. It's got a warm traditional feel, friendly service and a good pint of ale. I used to drink Marston's Pedigree, but I've started drinking the Sharp's Doom Bar. That's my favourite right now.

"You get a good football crowd, too, and my pals like coming in here. There's folk music on Sunday nights and a great vibe. The food's good value for money and the chips are to die for. We pride ourselves on our chips."

Key dates

• 1981 — Alan Shepherd is apprenticed as a vehicle body builder for British Rail

• 1986 — Decides he'll be better at sales and joins Bass, travelling the country in a variety of roles, including national accounts manager and sales trainer

• 1993 — Moves to Marston's as freetrade training manager and national account controller

• 1999 — Appointed head of sales and marketing at Nottingham brewer Hardys & Hans