We're all in this together
A few readers tell me they've got pubco-tie fatigue. They run freehouses so the issues don't affect them. Ditto licensees in the managed sector. The message is: You're doing too much on pubcos. Don't forget there's a lot more to the pub trade than
disaffected tenants.
In one sense, couldn't agree more. There are plenty of not specifically pubco issues out there. The recession and how it affects all pubs. The social trends and what they're
doing to the leisure pound. Licensing. Policing. Range of drinks. The property market's ups and downs. Staff management. Marketing. Promotions. Business building. These issues apply to all our readers. And I'm happy to say that the Morning Advertiser covers them professionally, expertly and in the most reader-friendly way possible (particularly
since 2000, when current publisher William Reed Business Media took control of this historic title).
But in another sense, I disagree strongly. For what happens in this sector - which
with its 30,000-odd pubs comprises over half the entire number - has profound
implications for every pub in the land. At the most fundamental level, if the tie is scrapped, freehouse licensees will find themselves operating in a very altered
landscape. How business is done, what discounts are available, which brewers you
deal with and which pubs then become direct rivals will all have to be rethought.
Clearly, managed houses will not be so directly affected. But if the tie goes, it will most definitely be a whole new ball game for everyone in the trade.
And there's another level that justifies all our coverage. The bad publicity this trade has endured recently has been directly related to the sufferings of tenants running pubco pubs. The mess we're in with politicians relates exclusively to this. Until we sort out the pubco/tenant issues on the table, our trade will be forever on the back foot. Our image will continue to be tarnished. And recruitment of fresh blood to take on pubs or work in them will be severely hampered.
As the MA's campaign Trust in the Trade has consistently articulated over the past
months, what's lacking in our trade at the moment is trust. We've got to find a way for
tenants to feel they can trust their landlord not to screw them. And vice versa. Unless we're careful, lack of trust will scupper honourable pubco initiatives.
Marston's new deal, for example, looks exactly that - genuinely improved packages that, in Alistair Darby's words, put margins into the pubs "without exploding our own business".
If we're to move forward, there comes a time when previous bitterness has to be put aside, and life looked at with an open mind. After all we've gone through, hopefully that time is now not too far away.
