Potential smoking ban ‘extremely concerning’ for northern pubs

The fifth-generation boss of Manchester-based Joseph Holt said the pubs side of business has worked hard post-Covid and has driven its licensees to success by sharing ideas in regular meetings and sharing the knowledge but added there are negatives in the on-trade that are nationwide issues.

Richard, who worked for five years at Whitbread and two years as a trainee brewer for Morrell’s Brewery in Oxford, before joining the family business in 1980, says: “One would be naive not to think the trade throughout the whole country is about 10% down on beer sales compared to where it was pre-Covid so, as an industry, we’re down so why would the Government, at this point in time, introduce a potential smoking ban in beer gardens, which would be to boot a man when he’s already on the floor?

“From our point of view, it would have a pretty negative effect on our business. It would also be extremely hard to police and if [a smoker] can just walk out onto the pavement then can they not carry on smoking?

“[The potential smoking ban​] is a very odd suggestion and it’d be very damaging to us.

“I was at a dinner recently with quite a number of independent family brewers and all of them were extremely concerned about it and it’s quite interesting because quite a few of them are from the south and I would say it will affect us more in the north.

“Don’t forget most northern pubs don’t serve a chip so many of them are wet-only sites. Inevitably, there are going be more people who are smoking in those pubs that there would be in some of the southern pubs so it would disproportionately hit businesses in the north, which are the very areas where the Government should be trying to help.”

Richard went on to explain further issues affecting the sector and what he would like to see from the Government.

“Business rates are five times higher for a pub business than they are for a comparable shop next door on the high street,” he begins. “That must be an area where they have to look at some reform and they’ve said they’re going to.”

Tax on beer ​

He adds another big area for the Government to look at is the opportunity now of reducing the tax on draught beer duty.

He continues: “If they can do that, which is only about 30% of the total of beer sold in this country, that would be a hugely popular way to help every pub in this country.

“Certainly we, as a brewer in the past, when we had those duty reductions, passed on the reduction straight away so it would be extremely helpful.”

Richard adds the move to reduce duty by half on beers produced at 3.4% ABV and below has encouraged more brewers to move production that way, which helps reduce the number of units of alcohol sold in the UK – a pledge made by more than one Government.

He adds: “How do you, at the end of lockdown, reduce the amount of alcohol units sold in this country?

“The answer was to open the pubs! Total revenue fell, which is the most extraordinary statistic in the very year the pub was allowed to reopen – so it shows what a good force for good pubs are and how the Government should be looking to help them.”

Goals in the short, medium and long term for Joseph Holt certainly include expanding its pub estate, Hotels by Holt​ and its brewing side.

Richard explains: “We’re looking at looking at growing our pub estate by buying certainly a pub every year. We bought some super pubs over the past few years. We bought a very nice one from Stonegate last year called the Roebuck, which we refurbished and reopened, on the east side of Manchester, towards Middleton, in Alkrington.

“We bought a very nice pub in the town centre called the Lower Turks Head – so we’ve been trying to add quality pubs over the years.

Keen to acquire​

“We’ve got an old pub in central Manchester, which has now become part of the northern quarter that we bought about four or five years ago called the Shamrock, which we’ll be doing up with a major development next year.

“Then on the free trade side, we’ll continue to add salesman to our sales force and we’re constantly on the lookout to pick up good sales people.

“We will keep an eye on the hotel side and expand in that direction. We’re certainly keen to acquire at the moment if we could find say another two or three pubs, we’d certainly go for it.

“We also want to continue to spend money in the brewery. You can’t produce the quality award-winning beers that we do without buying a new bit of kit every year and really continuing to push that quality in every way you can.”

But back to his requirements of the Government, he says: “If we get Government support and we’re not treated as a nanny state then we’ve got some good times ahead but if we’re hit with a smoking ban in outside areas, or start tinkering about with [opening] hours or any other types of control that would be very bad for the hospitality trade and, in particular, for pubs.”

He adds these potential problems come at the very time pubs are providing terrific support for people by combating loneliness and helping society.

Not least of all is the fact Joseph Holt pubs run a huge number of different groups that include pensioner groups and ‘Menopause Sucks’ groups, which Richard describes “phenomenally popular”.

Richard’s son Andrew, who worked as in sales for St Austell Brewery for five or six years before joining the family business, adds: “At this time of year everyone’s going back to school and a lot of our pubs offer school uniform banks where people can come in and just help themselves to appropriate uniform. There’s no questions asked, no judgement, just come in and grab it – and we encourage donations to fill that up so that’s been amazing but also pretty tragic to see how many people have a need for that in this day and age.”

• To read an article on Joseph Holt's Richard and Andrew Kershaw's belief that the pub is the ‘final bastion’ in communities and its Hotels by Holt offer, click here​. ​