Enterprise in talks with 'dozens' of SIBA brewers

Enterprise Inns is in conversations with dozens of SIBA brewers about taking on one of its pubs with a free of tie arrangement to supply their own cask beer.

Thornbridge Brewery​ was the first to take on the new deal from Enterprise when it opened the Greystones in Sheffield earlier this month.

Under the deal, the brewers are tied on lagers, wines and soft drinks but are free to supply their own cask beer to the pub in a move that mirrors Everards Project William.

"We have a couple of dozen conversations going on at the moment but only one agreement struck [Thornbridge]," Enterprise chief operating officer Simon Townsend said.

"Any SIBA brewer who chooses to take on one of our pubs has the option to negotiate an agreement to supply all of its own brewed cask beer to that pub."

He added: "At a time when we have now got 89% of our pubs let on substantive agreements, the number of pubs available on new agreements is lower than it has been for some considerable amount of time but that doesn't mean that there aren't real opportunities around our estate for the appropriately skilled and appropriately ambitious SIBA brewer.

Townsend said Enterprise had learnt a lot from the Thornbridge deal and would be using it as a "strong case study" in moving forward and working with other brewers.

"The Greystones is much more than a cask ale pub, much more than a SIBA brewer's cask ale pub. It has a whole array of local suppliers and provenance that has been bought back to bear on this pub.

"We will use this as a benchmark case study on how to construct a business opportunity and then realise it. We hope it will be extremely successful."

But Enterprise warned there had also been past failures with brewers because of the need for strict financial controls when running a retail outlet.