My Shout

Helping you meet the needs of customers

24-Nov-2011 - Having recently returned to the UK from my role as Commercial Director for Diageo in Ireland, my first impression of pubs over here at the moment is of a sector that is vibrant and responsive to meeting the needs of today’s pub visitor.

Back our pubs and reap the rewards

17-Nov-2011 - Against a background where the vast majority of pubs are seen as responsibly right, why have successive governments discriminated against them instead of supporting them?

Old-school landlords are our unsung heroes

16-Nov-2011 - Whenever I chat to Chas, the landlord of my local, I am impressed not only by the depth of his pub-trade knowledge but its streetwise nature.

BDMs: leadership is the key criterion

10-Nov-2011 - The business development manager (BDM) is the linchpin role for the tenanted and leased-pub business. So it is puzzling that as an industry we don’t spend more time focusing on it — and talking about it — given the extent of its impact on the businesses of both licensees and pubcos.

Pub sector deserves genuine leadership

07-Nov-2011 - There are not many things that we all agree on in the pub sector, but I think that most people would accept that times are a-changing.

Chickens are roosting for Alcohol Concern

03-Nov-2011 - I had a distinct sense of chickens coming home to roost when I heard that Alcohol Concern had lost its annual funding from the Department of Health.

The inspiration that will drive quality in 2012

25-Oct-2011 - I attended two significant but quite different beer events in recent weeks — the launch of the fifth UK Cask Report and my first ever visit to the Great American Beer Festival in Denver, Colorado.

Back trade and we’ll all thrive

20-Oct-2011 - This is a critical time for our industry and the country’s economy. No less a person than the Governor of the Bank of England fears that the financial crisis is the worst the country has ever seen. Living standards are being squeezed to an extent not witnessed since the 1920s.

We need a Fresher look at student drinking

17-Oct-2011 - The students are back. There’s a definite shift in mood and in tempo here in Brighton as some 30,000 young people arrive at the city’s two univerisities to study – and to drink.

Take time to think about your business

07-Oct-2011 - Just now and then, work on the pub, not in it. These are challenging times for anyone in business and not least for the pub trade.

Who does Brigid Simmonds remind you of?

07-Oct-2011 - Like many of you I listened to Peter White’s interview with British Beer and Pub Association chief executive Brigid Simmonds on the Radio 4 programme You and Yours.

Be vigilant: the lone moaners are out there

30-Sep-2011 - A month ago the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) had a pop at Heineken over its advert for Kronenbourg 1664, which it judged implied that the beer was brewed in France, which it isn’t. The ruling generated national media interest, including the BBC’s Watchdog.

Only the law can help pub trade change its ways

29-Sep-2011 - Finally, after four enquiries into pubcos in eight years and four reports with consistent recommendations to the industry on how to sort itself out, the Business, Innovation & Skills Select Committee has told the Government it is time to act.

Boris and the sobriety test

27-Sep-2011 - Writing in the Daily Telegraph on the 19th September, London Mayor Boris Johnson laments the number of violent offenders who don’t get sent to prison, and calls for the introduction of a “sobriety test” for all persons convicted of drink-related violent offences.

Good news for beer, but what about the pub?

26-Sep-2011 - When it comes to British beer, to quote Harold Macmillan, we have never had it so good. Nationally, we now have 840 breweries, with almost 100 new ones opening across the UK in the past year, with a remarkable 5,500 beers now in regular production, a new report shows. As Roger Protz pointed out, to sample those would take something like 25 years. Now that’s a challenge.

Make it happen and go for victory at Games

21-Sep-2011 - Making it happen — what better slogan to summarise the build-up to London 2012? And going by the juggernaut of activity since we won the bid in 2005, London is doing just that.

Inspirational insight into story of alcohol

13-Sep-2011 - I recall the 1980s (as a mere 20-something) driving at 11.15pm approaching Edinburgh on the A702 — city lights in the distance — to meet friends for relaxed pints before I retired. No last orders bell — just a good atmosphere following a long drive.

Opinion

Decisive action is vital if pubs are to survive

06-Sep-2011 - As many town-centre pubs and bars recover slowly from the effects of the recent riots, it was disturbing to hear from a couple of pubs that trade has still not returned to previous levels and that customers, especially in the early part of the week, are staying away.

It's time to sell GBBF to the wider world

22-Aug-2011 - The Great British Beer Festival is becoming a venerable British institution but could benefit from a bit of a rethink, says Tony Jennings.

Food throws lifeline to wet-led pubs

16-Aug-2011 - Traditional wet-led pub operations are already feeling the strain, so a more diverse offering may be their only way forward, writes Simon Chaplin.

A summery summary of the coalition's work

05-Aug-2011 - It is time for ministers to turn warm words into action. The Save the Pub Group will hold them to account if they don't, writes Greg Mulholland.

Unite to maximise the benefits of 2012

03-Aug-2011 - If there is a genuine spillover benefit for the whole UK in 2012, let's ensure all areas outside London are ready to capitalise, writes Stephen Crawley.

Keep heroes in mind when raising funds

25-Jul-2011 - Chairman of Quercus Pub Co, David Elliott, is urging licensees who have not yet adopted a charity for their business to consider supporting Help For Heroes.

CAMRA's critics should aim at the real enemies

11-Jul-2011 - Tony Jennings, CEO of Budweiser Budvar UK, is unimpressed by individuals and companies criticising CAMRA to boost their own publicity.

Oldies' drink warnings are based on myths

01-Jul-2011 - Paul Chase is concerned by the "one-size-fits-all" recommendations of the Royal College of Psychiatrists on alcohol problems among the elderly.