Running A Pub For A Brewery: A Step By Step Guide

For many, the ideas of running a pub is an attractive option. The hours may be long, but it’s a chance to work in a friendly, people-focused environment – and one of the UK’s oldest industries, often at the heart of local communities.

When it comes to running a pub, there are a few options – from being a pub owner (buying a pub freehold and owning it outright) to working as an employed pub manager. But there is a third option – running a pub for a brewery or pub company as a tenant landlord, which essentially means leasing the pub from a brewery, as if you were running your own business.

Running a pub successfully is challenging, so careful planning and consideration of your business model is essential – after all, start-up costs for a tenancy are usually between £20,000 - £50,000, and rent is often set at around 12% of turnover.¹

Even if you're not running your own pub business, you'll need to plan as if you are. To help you plan, we’ve taken a look at the top five issues to consider.

Running a Pub for a Brewery: Five Issues to Consider

1. Get Training

If you’re new to the pub trade, you will need some training and qualifications and may want to consider the British Institute of Inn Keeping Pre-Entry Awareness Training (PEAT). This is essentially a business course designed for prospective tenants / lessees who are considering signing a pub tenancy or lease agreement.²

You will also need a personal licence to sell alcohol, known as an APLH, which means sitting an exam on topics such as selling alcohol and running a pub to relevant legislation like employment law and trading standards law.³ You'll also need a designated premises supervisor (often the personal licence holder) - read more about the kinds of licenses you need.

The good news here is the breweries themselves may offer affordable training. Meanwhile, some other courses are free as part of support organisations.⁴

2. Insure Your Business

As with any business, insurance is vital to protecting your pub against the unexpected. In some cases, the brewery will have insurance for the building itself but you will need to take out your own cover too.

Covers you need will usually include employers liability and public liability insurance – which cover legal defence fees and any compensation in the event someone is injured or falls ill while working in your pub or visiting as a customer or supplier. On top of that, you will usually need cover for fixtures and fittings, furniture and equipment, stock, frozen goods and money, as well as ‘loss of licence’.⁵

In fact, you may be able to build a tailored insurance policy to cover all your risks in one affordable package. You can find out more here about tailored pub insurance here.

3. Hiring People

It’s fair to say that most pubs are only as good as the people running them. Quick, friendly service in a vibrant, busy atmosphere helps to create a sense of community, and is vital to building a loyal customer base and to attracting new visitors – be they tourists or locals.

If possible, it may be a good idea to retain any existing staff ‒ provided they are dedicated, reliable workers and popular with locals or regulars. Another option may be to work with a dedicated pub staff recruitment agency, to hire people to have experience working in the pub industry. But however you go about finding staff, remember to keep on the right side of employment law and take out compulsory employers liability insurance.

4. Take Stock

Clearly, you will need to buy in stock – from drinks to snacks and food. Remember that, if you’re running a pub for a brewery, it is likely to be classed as ‘full tie’ which means that you will be tied in to buying your stock from the brewery. With a ‘partial tie’ agreement you can still buy your beer and cider through the brewery but will have more freedom to buy additional stock from other suppliers.⁶ Either option doesn’t mean you have no control over the kind of pub you want to run – from the mix of drinks available to the type of food. That pre-thinking, along with some information from the brewery around the cost of the stock you will need should give you an idea of running costs.

5. Build Your Business

As with any business, attracting loyal customers and building a good reputation is vital to a pub's success. Marketing can play an important part – and these days that should include things like social media and review sites like TripAdvisor. But there are more traditional ways to build trade too – particularly on those midweek nights when lots of pubs are quiet. Events, whether music, quiz or community-based, and themed nights like steak night or curry night, can support your thriving pub business and help to bring in the customers, particularly if they are run regularly and well promoted ‒ both in the pub, outside and on social media.

Running a Pub for a Brewery: The Final Word

Make no mistake, working in the pub sector isn't easy, but if you get it right it can be incredibly rewarding. So, if you’re thinking about taking the plunge, do your homework and good luck!

Sources

1. gardiffepos.com/opening-a-pub-in-the-uk-the-ultimate-guide
2. bii.org/PEAT-England-Wales
3. wakefield.gov.uk/award-for-personal-licence-holders-aplh
4. punchpubs.com/training-and-development
5. smeinsurance.com/food-and-drink-insurance/pub-insurance
6. greenekingpubs.co.uk/running-a-pub/different-ways-run-pub-tenancy-lease-or-franchise