Harnessing the Churchill spirit at the pub

Kensington licensee Gerry O'Brien tells Michelle Perrett how he has built trade and turned the Churchill Arms in west London's Notting Hill into a £2m turnover pub.

How I got here​

I came to London from County Clare over 42 years ago and my first job was as a barman at Vintage Inns' Prince Regent pub on Marylebone High Street.

I was lucky to get a job there because the licensee, Michael Tierney, had very high standards. He used to check that our shoes were polished and that we had clean and folded handkerchiefs. I got a great start there. Then I took on the Drayton Arms as my first pub to run before Fuller's approached me about running one for them.

I was fortunate to get the Churchill Arms and to be given the time to turn it around. I have been here for 25 years.

The pub and the food​

When I took on the pub I was really concerned there was no space for food. After a year Fuller's agreed with me and I transformed the garage into a restaurant area. I took on the food franchise myself and I was producing traditional food, but in the end it was too much — it was impossible to cope with the huge operation, being a single chap.

But I met a Thai chef and he was looking for his own restaurant. I didn't know what Thai food was back then, but I took a chance once I had tasted it, as I just thought the food was something else.

As a result I believe we were the first pub in London to do Thai food. People were calling in and wanting to see the restaurant and the kitchen. I am still baffled by it all now.

He spent two years with me and then he got his own restaurant. But he found another couple to take on the food operation and they have been with me for 20 years.

Now we still serve Thai food in the evenings through the franchise, but in the daytime we serve standard British food such as ploughman's and fish & chips, which I run. The Thai restaurant means we are getting the benefit in beer and wine sales in the evenings.

The early days​

This area of Notting Hill has improved massively over the past 10 to 15 years or so. The area was a bit rough in those early days, but now nice people have returned.

The whole time I have been here the business has been climbing, climbing, climbing.

Every year we run the Churchill Night. We stay up after the pub has shut and do the decorating throughout the night to keep the surprise factor for the customers.

We end up blowing up balloons until 4 in the morning. It is the only way to do it. It is a huge event for the team. And this year we are also running our first Battle of Britain event.

The pub has got better at every event we do. There is one couple who come from Denmark every year for the Churchill event and this is their 10th year running. They are members of the Danish Churchill Society. Can you believe that?

St Patrick's night is obviously a big night for us. But St George's Day has become massive as well. We started it two to three years ago and it went down a treat. It is nearly as popular as Paddy's night now. We are also a good rugby pub.

The events are important for the pub, but you have got to be careful you don't get carried away and have too many.

Major awards​

In the summer months we used to lose out to other pubs as we have no outside area. We cannot put any tables and chairs outside and we have no garden. In the first year we put out hanging baskets, but now we have flowers that go right up to the chimney pots.

We have won major awards for the flowers and they have definitely helped the turnover here. We have just won London in Bloom for the third year.

This was the first pub to win Chelsea in Bloom and we even made it onto the TV that night. I was getting calls and cards from people from all over the place.

At Christmas we decorate the pub with Christmas trees. Last year we had 47 of them on the outside of the pub and it just stops people in their tracks.

It really does wonders for the business. I am hoping to have 50 trees this year — but I haven't told the brewery about it yet.

The bar​

As a Fuller's pub we stock all of its beers. London Pride is our best seller and it has been consistently popular. The Honeydew is going very well, with men as well as women. I nearly ran out this week, it has been going so well. We also sell a good amount of lager, as well as Guinness.

The future​

The next big event will be Prince William and Kate Middleton's wedding, and then the Rugby World Cup. The year after — 2012 — is the Queen's Diamond Jubilee and I am planning a street party.

Then, a few weeks later, we have the Olympics. I am still thinking of what I can do for the Olympics.

For years we were the top turnover pub in the Fuller's estate and we are still in the top five, despite the increased size of the estate.

Six of my former team are now running their own pubs for Fuller's and the seventh is on the way. I am very proud of that. I love the pub and that is what kept me here. I never want to leave.

All you need is love​

If you are in the business you need to have a love for it. You can't treat it as just a job, because it becomes your life. You have to have the love for it and take the hardship with it. It is not a nine-to-five job — it is seven days a week, 24 hours a day. You need a lot of energy.

If it means a lot to you, it will rub off on your team and you will put everything into it without even realising it. Running a pub does take a lot of effort and you have to look at what you are doing to cope with that. It is how you present the business and how you act behind the bar. It is like coming on to the stage, that is how I see it.

Facts 'n' stats​

Landlord: Fuller's

Turnover 1985: around £260,000 per annum (this is about £587,000 in 'today's money', taking into account inflation via the RPI)

Turnover 2009: £2m per annum

Growth rate: 30% over five years

Wet:dry ratio: 75:25

Wet GP: 72%

Dry GP: 65% (estimated)

Number of staff: six full-time bar staff, 14 kitchen staff (both part time and full time)

Covers: 75 in restaurant area

(up to 200 in bar, plus extra tables when service is busy)

Average meal cost: £9