Formerly the Panton Arms, the pub is cashing in on the craze and encouraging gamers that they have “gotta catch them all” by also offering 20% off to players who have captured more than 30 characters.
Selfies with sign
The new pub sign, which features iconic Pokémon Pikachu, has become something of a talking point with gamers spotted posing for selfies in front of it.
Licensee Ed Griffiths said: “The church over the road and the war memorial are a PokéStop and I kept seeing more and more people around the pub and occasionally using the pub.”
After joking about the idea with a friend, Griffiths decided to change the name on Tuesday (16 August). He said: “It has gone pretty much nuts since yesterday (17 August) evening really.”
“It is a temporary arrangement but we will keep it for a couple of weeks,” the licensee explained. He also said that regulars had a slightly mixed review about the new sign.
“I have got an older crowd of older regulars who all see the funny side of it but they are asking when it is coming down. The younger crowd think it is very funny.”
The pub has also seen a difference in trade in the short time the sign has been changed: “I have noticed about a dozen customers more per day.”
Internet
As there is little internet signal in the area available, Griffiths realised he could make the most of the pub’s Wi-Fi for gamers to use: “We had a lot of youngsters outside using out Wi-Fi so we thought we would try something to get them and their parents in.”
The pub has posted its new name on its Facebook page and it appears to have gone down well with fans as the posts have been shared 15 times.
London bar Maxwell’s also jumped on the Pokémon bandwagon and saw a 26% increase in customers after their first week of trading as a PokéStop.
Pokémon Go pub crawls hit the US just after the game was released, pairing drinking with gaming.