Urban Inns for the 21st century
David Catling and Don MacIntyre are working with Enterprise Inns and Young's to re-invent the coaching inn. Lucy Britner reports.
To paraphrase Alan Partridge, progress in the pub trade seems to be about "evolution, not revolution". Reviving a traditional concept and making it appeal to the 21st century pub-goer is exactly what new pub company Urban Inns is about.
The company is the brainchild of former Mean Fiddler operations manager David Catling and ex-executive director of Destination Marketing and Destination PR Don MacIntyre.
Catling and MacIntyre boast expertise in both the pub and hotel trade and after a couple of years searching for the ideal business model, the pair decided to revive the British inn. But we're not talking about stairs through a door behind the bar, leading up to chintzy bedrooms.
The rooms at Urban's first site, the Old Ship in London's Hackney, are stylish and come with a posh Pecksniff's toiletries goodie bag. The food is also a far cry from tinned soup and UFOs (unidentified fried objects).
Despite their attention to detail in all 10 of the Old Ship's letting rooms and the use of British seasonal produce on the menu, gastropub/boutique hotel, it ain't.
"We're not in competition with people like Tom and Ed Martin or Gordon Ramsay. We want people to visit the pub two or three times a week and use us for occasions, as well as times when they can't be bothered to cook," says Catling. "There are two taboo phrases here — gastropub and boutique hotel."
The team hired ex-Marco Pierre White and Martin Brothers chef Scott Wade to set up the kitchen. The menu is well thought out, affordable and changes four times a year.
Catling and MacIntyre wanted to show that you can produce good quality, seasonal food at affordable prices. Brixham fish and chips, mushy peas and tartare sauce comes in at £9 and honey-glazed ham joint with English mustard mash and bean cream sauce also costs £9.
The rooms are reasonable too — £99 for a double and £79 for a single. "Scott helped set up the menu and get the offering right. Our new head chef is Mark Ovid, who has come from a high-street restaurant background. I think we are more like the Pub Du Vin concept than a boutique gastro," says Catling.
The concept as it is now seems perfect, but it hasn't all been plain sailing. The business idea started off as a bar/restaurant concept, but according to Catling, there weren't enough quality sites around to roll out as quickly as they wanted.
What they did find was a ready supply of pubs on the market and the Urban Inns model began to take shape. The pair didn't pay a premium for the Old Ship or for their second site the Coach & Horses in Isleworth.
"Old Ship pubco Enterprise Inns has contributed £500,000 to the £700,000 refurbishment of the site," says Catling. "Coach & Horses landlord Young's has shelled out £700,00O of a £950,000 budget. This site is trading at the moment, but is set to open as a fully fledged Urban Inn in autumn."
The company itself is privately funded and Catling says the Old
Ship is already trading at £11,000
in a good week — without any marketing.
The wet:dry:accommodation split at the pub is still bedding in and the beauty of the design is that drinkers feel as welcome as diners. Trade is split at around 40:40:20 and Catling expects the rooms to be up to 60% occupancy when marketing kicks in.
Making lone female guests feel welcome is a main factor in the Urban Inns design. Catling even had the Chesterfield sofas redesigned to make them more female friendly and many of the Old Ship's single-room occupants are business women.
The pair hope to open 20 sites in the next five years, mostly in primary and secondary high-street locations and are negotiating on a freehold in Hertfordshire.
Catling and MacIntyre aren't trying to re-invent the wheel. The concept is about stylish rooms and good British produce — both food and drink — at affordable prices in a modern Urban Inn.
