Keep upholding the old virtues and standards'
13-Jan-2005
As retired licensees we may be enjoying life to the full, but that does not mean that we are out of touch with what goes on in the UK. We only see...
New era' paves way for off-trade to join BII
13-Jan-2005
by John Harrington The British Institute of Innkeep-ing to be known in future as simply the BII is now offering membership to the off-trade as...
The way forward
12-Jan-2005
Now that the Trade & Industry Select Committee has finished its investigation into the pub companies, what steps can the industry take to build a...
Shouting for pubs
12-Jan-2005
National Pubs Week is coming up fast - and organiser CAMRA is urging YOU to get involved. Chief executive Mike Benner tells Daniel Pearce how.No one...
High street wins battle for Christmas pound
12-Jan-2005
News of modest but significant increases in like-for-like sales over the festive trading period delivered a note of optimism to the high street...
Casualties expected as W&DB integrates Burtonwood
12-Jan-2005
The new owners of Burtonwood's 460 pubs are moving full steam ahead with the integration expected to be completed by May.Wolverhampton & Dudley...
Licensee continues to back quizmaster after court battle
12-Jan-2005
A publican has re-affirmed his faith in his quizmaster after he was cleared of cheat allegations when a two and a half year court battle ended...
First smoke-free pub for Wetherspoon's
10-Jan-2005
JD Wetherspoon is to open its first ever smoke-free pub next Sunday.The new pub, George's Meeting House in Exeter, will be completely non-smoking...
What the Sunday papers said…
10-Jan-2005
Troubled pub company Regent Inns, owner of the Walkabout and Jongleurs bars, is understood to have issued redundancy notices to 27 of the 87...
High Street fortunes pick up after Christmas sales surge
06-Jan-2005
New Year delivered a much-needed dose of optimism to the high street retailers as strong Christmas trading marked a turnabout in the sector.As...
It was like being breathalysed after a night out when you'd
06-Jan-2005
Wolverhampton & Dudley was another pubco that could confidently blow into Martin O'Neill's bag. Its business practices are progressive and...
Martin O'Neill has simply represented the pubcos'
06-Jan-2005
I predicted after the first stage of the verbal evidence that the Trade & Industry Select Committee inquiry into pubco power would come to...
Tadcaster hits growth target
06-Jan-2005
Tadcaster Pub Company has reached its target of building an estate of 50 pubs by the end of 2004, achieving an objective set at the company's launch...
The boy done not too bad
06-Jan-2005
The Trade & Industry Select Committee's pubco report is a curious mixture of naivety and crassness but also spot-on accuracy of judgement....
Has JDW dropped a Belgian bolleke?
06-Jan-2005
Beer-drinking circles were buzzing last month when Wetherspoon's announced it was launching the famous Belgian beer De Koninck on draught throughout...
Big rise in directors' earnings at W&DB
06-Jan-2005
Total remuneration to the board of executive and non-executive directors at Wolves & Dudley Breweries (W&DB) increased by just over 30% to...
Pub tip ruling to increase National Insurance bill
04-Jan-2005
New guidelines from the taxman are set to increase the National Insurance bill for pubs which use tips to bring staff up to minimum wage levels.After...
Help & Advice Urgently Required
21-Dec-2004
We found a building with a freehold option to buy (This being a main piont of our negotiations) with a company called provence plc for our new...
Trade and Industry Committee criticises CAMRA
21-Dec-2004
Martin O' Neill, chairman of the Trade and Industry Select Committee, has refuted claims by the Campaign for Real Ale (CAMRA) that its report on the...
Mixed reaction to pubco investigation
21-Dec-2004
The findings of the Trade and Industry Select Committee investigation into pubcos have been received with a mixed reaction from those who gave...
Devon pub put on trial
17-Dec-2004
Residents of a North Devon village are being given an early Christmas present - the reopening of their local pub.Pub company Mentor Inns has...
I'm a celebrity, take my pic in your pub
16-Dec-2004
The Campaign for Real Ale (Camra) is urging the public to get out to pubs and hunt down celebrities in order to win its Celebrity in a Pub photographic competition
Chef scoops kids' food win
16-Dec-2004
Leading northern chef Nigel Haworth's new pub has been voted as having the best childrens' menu in Britain. The Three Fishes in Mitton, Lancashire,...
Brook lands new role with Punch
16-Dec-2004
InnSpired chief executive Peter Brook is set to join Punch Taverns as property and strategy director, according to Morning Advertiser sister...
Blunkett's pub blitz
16-Dec-2004
"We had the summer campaign," said the lady at the Home Office press office, "and now we're going to have the Christmas blitz." This was in response...
Hunt for gang after licensee is stabbed
16-Dec-2004
A Manchester licensee had a knife plunged six inches into his back after going to the aid of one of his customers who thought he was going to be...
Piano proves key addition
16-Dec-2004
Piano evenings have fast become a big hit at the Coach & Horses in Edenfield, Lancashire and diners in the new extension, which is currently...
Pub closures won't stop teen boozers
16-Dec-2004
Trade warns PM that 24-hour closure orders for problem pubs are irrelevant by Ewan Turney Trade leaders have warned Tony Blair that tough new...
Mirror image
16-Dec-2004
Binge drinking has been a major topic this year, but a look at the Daily Mirror reveals that we've been here before.PHIL DIXON explains I have...
On the right track
16-Dec-2004
Bill Dax left his high-powered job at Eurotunnel to run a Buckinghamshire gastro pub. One year on, turnover has more than trebled. John Harrington...
That was the fear that was
16-Dec-2004
As licensees and suppliers gear up for the busiest time of year, there's little chance to reflect on the past 12 months. But from the slightly less...
Straight from the horse's mouth...
16-Dec-2004
"At last I can ask people to come upstairs and see my etchings and really mean it!" Steve Ronchetti, licensee of the Bisley in Blaydon-upon-Tyne, who...
Views from the bar
16-Dec-2004
We asked hosts from the MA's list of top-20 pubs for this year's most fashionable drinks Rose & Crown, Warwick and the Fleece, Witney Peroni...
Don't let them take the heart of our community'
16-Dec-2004
I write to express my very real concerns over the Government proposals for a smoke ban in pubs that serve food. I wonder what would happen if they...
2004 - what the movers and shakers said
14-Dec-2004
The Publican asked the analysts, corporate financiers and industry players to comment on the issues and trends they believe will be pertinent in...
What the Sunday papers said…
13-Dec-2004
The expansion of casinos planned under the Government's gambling bill is to be scaled back again with a cap set on the number of both large and small...
BBPA speaks out over pay-for-policing
10-Dec-2004
The British Beer and Pub Association (BBPA) has reacted angrily to calls from an MP that pubs should pay for policing.In a letter to John Denham,...
HR for independant free houses?
09-Dec-2004
Pubcos/managed pubs are taking the initiative in the pub sector and recognising the importance of meeting and exceeding customer expectations through...
Paper-roll scam firms are still hitting pubs'
09-Dec-2004
Paper-roll scam firms are still hitting pubs'
500 M&B pubs may stop food to service smokers
09-Dec-2004
by The PMA Team The proposed smoke ban in pubs offering food would force Mitchells & Butlers to end its food service at 500 pubs, chief...
Gone for a Burtonwood
09-Dec-2004
Wolves & Dudley has snapped up the 460-strong Burtonwood estate in a deal that strengthens the company's position as a super-regional. The PMA...
Greene King to focus on Laurel integration
09-Dec-2004
Suffolk-based brewer Greene King said today the integration of Laurel was going ahead as planned.As the company released its interim results figures...
Landlords must open books for fairer rents'
09-Dec-2004
The rent review process is heavily weighted against the pubco tenant, argues ALEX SALUSSOLIA, chairman of the Association of Licensed Multiple...
Irresponsible promos' ban looms in Scotland
09-Dec-2004
by John Harrington Drinks promotions deemed "irresponsible" will be banned from Scottish pubs early next year, a top minister at the Scottish...
'Tis the season
09-Dec-2004
to trade upwards Enticing customers to buy more expensive wine during the Christmas period can really boost the bottom line. Wine consultant David...
Now's the time to be as snug as a bug
09-Dec-2004
A bit of lateral thinking this week: from snugs to jugs. I received a phone call from BBC Radio 5 Live asking me to adjudicate in a debate about the...
M&B tightens age policy after inquest comments
09-Dec-2004
by John Harrington Mitchells & Butlers has vowed to review procedures for preventing under-age sales following the inquest into the death of a...
Master
09-Dec-2004
of all he surveys A Kentish licensee's rise from pub manager to tenant, lessee and now freehouse owner, has well prepared Russell Roberts for his...
Punch sells 545 InnSpired pubs
09-Dec-2004
Punch is to sell 545 of the pubs it bought from InnSpired in September to a new company, Pubfolio, for £162.5m or £300,000 each. The deal, for a...
Punch shows clout in NITAs
09-Dec-2004
Punch Taverns scooped the award for the best development programme in non-managed estates at the National Industry Training Awards (NITAs) held by...
