Thwaites launches new tenancy agreement

Regional brewer and pub operator Daniel Thwaites has launched a new tenancy agreement aimed at giving its licensees new essential tools to trade in a modern pub environment.

The new deal sees Lancashire-based Thwaites' standard agreement extended from three to five years alongside beer and drinks discounts being made available for the first time. Hosts signing up for the new contract will also be obliged to take up stock-taking services which the company describes as one of the essential mechanics of a pub business. Beer discounts of £30 per barrel alongside beer and small package cider discounts of £75 per barrel will sit alongside discounts on spirits of 10% with 15% on wine and minerals. Thwaites managing director Peter Morris said the initial discounts were a " starter" and further deals could be on the table if the initial offers proved successful. Rent reviews will take place every five years with a standard annual RPI clause also built into the agreement.

All new licensees taking tenancies will go straight onto the new deal while existing hosts will also be given the chance to sign up. "This is just part of a new pro-active initiative to help our pubs trade in a modern environment."There are other tactical initiatives in the pipeline to assist our tenants and give them the right tools to trade," said Morris. The tenancy agreement is one of the first results of a strategic review of Thwaites' business implemented by Morris when he took over as MD last May. "We have in the region of 385 tenanted pubs, many of them community wet-led houses, and we feel it is important that we can openly review the performance of a tenant's business with them, thereafter enabling us to focus what resources we have to help them run their pubs successfully. "We do not envisage selling off major batches of pubs but if a house is judged to be uneconomic for the long term we will sell it," he said.*

Thwaites is to invest £750,000 on new bottling line filler equipment to help it compete in the growing off trade and supermarket premium bottled ale sector. The company says it will increase bottling capacity and enable it to supply its brands to a wider market, particularly in the south of England. The Blackburn brewer said the investment would enhance quality and help market its award-winning brands such as Lancaster Bomber and Wainwrights. One of its latest initiatives, a four pack "Taste Of Lancashire," is already selling well within the Waitrose chain.