Building a 10-fold increase in trade

How I got here

I played professional football for Swansea City in the old fourth division and also rugby league for Halifax for two seasons and rugby union for Morley. I was pretty mediocre at all of those sports and certainly never reached the level of my Dad. In 1976 my father returned to Leeds and took over a Whitbread pub. I moved into the company. I then took a small break from the trade before taking on a pub in Dewsbury and then the Airedale Heifer, originally owned by White Rose Inns, before being bought out by Punch. I will have been here seven years in November and have increased business 10-fold in that time.

Why my pub is a success

1. Hard work - A lot of people don't appreciate just how much hard work running a pub is. So many new licensees think their job is to stand at the end of the bar having a drink. It is a 24-hour job and I put a hell of a lot of hard work in myself. Even after seven years I am still thinking what can I do to increase trade? You never stop learning.

2. A place for everyone - We have so many different activities going on so it is important to get on with all different people. We have a golf society with 50 members, netball teams, football teams, darts and dominoes teams and you need to talk to them all. We are a community pub and I try and get round and see everybody.

3. High standards - It sounds simple but when you go into other pubs and see the toilets are dirty or there is a light bulb gone somewhere you notice it. I have high standards on service and cleanliness.

How I look after my customers

You've got to always do your best for your customers, I've a security camera behind the bar so I can see people coming in from outside, that just about gives me enough time to have their favourite drink on the bar. Battyeford is a small village in West Yorkshire. For everyone living here, the Airedale is "their" local pub - not mine! We're at the heart of the village and they all feel part of it - young and old. For me, it's about always giving people something back, that extra reason to visit us and come again.

With the sports teams I put on food for them afterwards as a way of saying thanks for using my pub. They are well looked after. It gives me satisfaction to see people happy.

My staff training

My enthusiasm seems to rub off on them but also I have pretty high standards and sometimes they may get a bit pissed off with me, but with the price people have to pay for a drink these days it is important to get it right. Simple things like how do you pour a G&T? Do you pour the gin in first and then the ice? No, you pour the gin over the ice. They are all taught how to serve drinks properly. I am not a hard person but I like things to be right. We have bonding sessions where I take them out two or three times a year. Last month I took them to a restaurant just to show my appreciation. It is part of staff training. We also have three staff taking a free GNVQ course on bar work at the moment.

How I recruit the right staff

Sometimes it is hard to motivate staff but if they are not then they shouldn't be there. My staff are usually between 18 and 23 and normally at college or university. I don't have to advertise for staff they ring me up. The first few nights I show them the cellar and how to change the barrels and see how they go. If after two weeks we are not happy with each other we review the situation. I look for friendly, smiling staff with a personality. More than anything you want them to get on with

everyone. Friendly staff are a must-have.

My World Cup Plans

1. Preparation - Preparation is everything. Prepare the staff and get everything ready.

2. Big screens - I have two gazebos going up in the garden that will house two big screens. There is a big screen inside and another TV.

3. Ease of service - We have bottle bars so the bar is not crowded and have a BBQ doing burgers and hotdogs.

4. Competitions - We also have a competition running where you have to predict who wins each game. It is £5 to enter and basically you have to guess who will qualify from the groups and who will get to the final. You get points for each one you guess right and I hope to have about £500 raised (part in prize money and part for charity). It will keep interest in the tournament going.

5. Adopt Brazil - I have ordered some Brazil shirts as well. We have England ones for when they play, but I think Brazil will last longer, so we will adopt them afterwards. We want to get our money's worth. I will support England, even though my Dad played for Wales, as I was born here.

My charity work

We do loads of work for local charities and I guess over the years we've raised tens of thousands of pounds, that's what I mean when I say I'm always looking to put something back. We rowed 22 miles in the back garden last summer on a rowing machine, which is the width of the channel, and we raised £3,500 for meningitis research - which is a local cause that means a lot to us here.

My future plans

I think I will move in the next year or so. Seven years is long enough to stay at a pub and I need another challenge to sink my teeth into. I am looking at buying a bar in Spain. I quite fancy getting up in the morning and putting on my shorts. If it doesn't work out then I can always come back and I am sure Punch would give me another pub.

My Pub

Lease: Punch 10 years

Wet:dry split: 95%:5%

Turnover in 1999: £1,000 to £1,500 a week

Turnover now: £12,500 a week

GP on beer: 51.5%

Drinks on tap: 10, including Carling, Stella, Strongbow, Tetley's, Jennings and a guest beer

Number of staff: 19, all part time

Awards: Punch regional Shine Award winner