Licensee and chef of the Barn pub in Rugby, Ben Stead-Davis, explained the pub chose to diversify its offering for a “number of reasons”, but that staff shortages and soaring costs across the board, notably food and energy prices, were behind the decision.
He said: “Things are going up and up, nothing seems to have come down in price, so we changed our trading hours and concepts as well.”
The pub now often closes at 8pm rather than 10pm Monday to Wednesday and 10pm rather than 11pm on Thursdays.
Friday and Saturday hours remained unchanged, closing at the usual time of 11pm, however on Sunday’s the Barn tends to close at 8pm now.
Though staff shortages forced the family-run pub to temporarily close altogether between April and September this year, losing the business some £20,000 a week, with Stead-Davis attributing the recruitment crisis to the pandemic.
Different world
He said: “Since Covid it's difficult to get staff because a lot of people came out of hospitality, started delivering for Amazon or whoever, and realised they can get more money or doing less.
“A lot of people think hospitality is just a stop gap job, it's not taken as a career anymore. That needs to be brought back to life, it is a career, it's a passion.”
As well as trading hours, the pubs food offering has also been reduced and the Barn now only serves its full menu from Thursday to Sunday.
However, customers can still purchase what Stead-Davis called a bit of an “old school” offering of sandwiches and other counter display items from the bar Monday to Wednesday.
Stead-Davis said: “We're very lucky, we have some very good customer bases, they understand this is a different world.
“As long as we communicate with our customers when we're opening, so someone doesn't drive out to us, then find us closed, that will keep people happy.”
More support
While electricity costs, which recently jumped from £1,000 to £9,000 a month at the Barn, had a significant impact in the pubs decision making, food costs were a big contributor to the concept changes.
For example, Stead-Davis explained the cost of a block of fish from the pub’s wholesalers that previously cost £47 is now priced at £89.
Moreover, Stead-Davis has plans to further diversify the pubs offering with a ‘work from the pub’ package in the preparatory stages in the hope of increasing footfall.
Though the operator added the “big boys” of the industry being able to offer deals such as two steaks and a bottle of wine for £19 means smaller, independent businesses like the Barn “can’t compete”.
He added: “They can survive. They've got more money to throw away but they can also lose it.”
“We need some more support from the Government with energy, they just need to get a hold of it and workout how we move forward as a country, not just for hospitality.”
