Barracuda's Smith & Jones chain set to grow

The Smith & Jones chain is set for rapid expansion with 20 openings planned each year for the foreseeable future after parent company Barracuda set aside a £25m annual budget for growing the operation.

This will see the chain move beyond its south of England base. Evidence of its focus on creating a more national portfolio was seen in its two recent openings in Cannock, Staffordshire, and Sheffield in Yorkshire which have taken the Smith & Jones chain to 27 outlets.

Its future growth will be the responsibility of Sarah Dillon who recently joined the company as acquisitions manager after previously working for SFI Group.

A spokeswoman for Barracuda said: "We needed somebody on the case and she is now scouting around the country for sites. We chose to invest in somebody who can expand the business, which shows that we are not just paying lip-service to growing the company - instead we are putting our money where our mouth is."

In addition to growing the Smith & Jones brand, the company is planning to invest in its other chains, which include Bar Central.

It recently completed the £2.5m transformation of the majority of the 61 pubs it bought from the Ambishus group last year.

The former Ambishus estate has been transformed into 23 Smith and Jones branded outlets, with the others operating specifically as "high-quality volume bars", an example being the Warehouse in Loughborough (pictured)​.

Barracuda has said it wants to acquire at least 20 new Smith and Jones pubs a year, which will provide up to 400 jobs.