JD Wetherspoon founder Tim Martin made his first public appearance in 10 years at the recent MA200 meeting.
Martin told a group of the industry's leading independent, multiple retailers how he started out in the pub industry and grew his empire, explaining the key lessons he had learnt along the way.
In the opening slot, he told MA200 members what happened when he took on his first pub — Marler's in Muswell Hill.
At his first pub, he was locked out on the first day, had his windows put in on New Year's Eve and, by his own admission, drank too much and was an incompetent operator.
He also explained how the chain came to be known as Wetherspoon — after a teacher who could not control the class.
