City Diary — 25 November

Gould star for the common touch

A candidate for sharpest implement in the tenanted pubco tool box is Everards boss Stephen Gould. He was industry pathfinder in the pro-active recruitment of microbrewers as pub tenants. And finding and recruiting quality licensees is often helped by the personal touch. Diary hears he was quickly on the blower to BII (British Institute of Innkeeping) Licensees of the Year Richard and Loren Pope to set up a meeting when the MA mentioned the couple are looking for a second pub. "Let's see how we go," Gould tells Diary.

Shares prediction packs a Punch​

Share tips need treating with caution, especially when they come from City analysts. But they're always worth hearing. Here's one from an unusual source — Ken Turner, boss of AIM-listed gaming machine operator and pub supplies business Sceptre Leisure. Let's not forget he probably knows more about pubs than most — he runs a few through Weston Castle and empties the hoppers of AWPs nationwide. "If you look at Punch Taverns (LON:PUB) shares and Enterprise Inns (LON:ETI) shares I think you will see them really start to motor in the not too distant future," says Turner. "If you looked at their

earning previously there would be so much profit per pub — those profit per pub shares will be up massively as the tail of their estates comes off."

Thomas is a BII Council luminary​

More evidence that former Luminar boss Stephen Thomas is fully engaged in the on-trade. Aside from forming a new business, No Saints, with big ambitions, he's joined the BII Council, recruited by chairman Martin Grant. He's already attended a meeting. "His contribution was very clear," a Diary source says, somewhat gnomically.

Tough oop north at Enterprise pubs​

Enterprise Inns' chief operating officer Simon Townsend offers a useful snapshot of the estate. For a start, life's a lot tougher in the north — only 83% of pubs up there are currently on substantive leases, compared to a striking 95% in the south. More broadly, of the 2,000 or so pubs that have gone through rent review, which provides a better understanding for Enterprise of the actual mechanics of individual businesses, 90% of pubs are offering food, with food sales at an average of 25% of turnover. Average weekly sales of the 2,000 pubs stood at around £7,000 per week.

Faucet deals in hot property​

Looks like prime London freeholds can still occasionally sell for a multiple of earnings that echo the property heyday of five or so years ago.

The six Mitchells & Butlers venues, including three pink pubs, that were acquired through agent AG&G a month or so ago by Faucet Inn sold for £16.75m. With an EBITDA of £1.65m, it's a multiple of 10.2 times earnings. Not bad.

Crafty increase in beer sales​

Craft beer sales in the US are up 7% against a beer market down 2%. In the

UK, craft beer made by the microbrewers and regionals is up alongside "craft" world beers. Says Miller UK boss Nick Miller, whose Peroni sales are up 22%: "It's a replication of the same trend — the big brand era is starting to dissipate." Asked about the value versus volume conundrum, Miller says: "We're about driving value for the retailer by offering a product customers are willing to pay more for." Discuss.

M&B homing in on Ember sites​

What news on M&B's plan to convert existing sites to drive brands? Looks like Ember Inns is offering a plentiful pot of conversion sites. Last Friday saw the opening of the Horse & Groom, Merrow, Surrey, an ex-Ember site, as a Project S gastro outlet. Meanwhile, four Ember sites have been added to the Pub & Kitchen concept, a sub-division of Vintage Inns. The sites are: the Castle in Wakefield, West Yorkshire, the Anchor Inn, Wirral, and the Rose & Crown, Kings Langley and Fishery Inn, Hemel Hempstead, both in Hertfordshire. The group operates 31 Pub & Kitchen sites, an upmarket dining concept that offers a standard of dining between Vintage Inns and Project S.

A second pub is red rag to Bull operators​

Roll up, roll up, roll up, freehold bargains to be had, part 37. Diary hears that top-notch Kent pub operators Lucy and Mark Barron-Reid,

who run the Bull at Benenden, are close to picking up their second pub. There are some suggestions it's a freehold dropping out of the Admiral estate. Watch this space.