The new venue, located within the Students’ Association building on St Mary’s Place in central St Andrews, will open on 4 September ahead of the new academic year.
The pub will have its own dedicated entrance and will be open to both students and the wider public year-round.
The project will see the current ground floor bar fully refurbished and rebranded, with plans including a new bar layout, updated dispense system, kitchen equipment and a redesigned interior featuring new lighting, artwork and fittings. The site will serve JDW’s full food and drink menu.
‘Better value’ for students
Students will help choose the name of the pub, with suggestions based on local history set to be considered ahead of opening.
Robert Moran, president of student opportunities at the University of St Andrews Students’ Association, said: “A partnership with JD Wetherspoon is a positive step forward for students in St Andrews, bringing new opportunities, increased employment, and better-value food and drink.
“It supports our ambition to make this space a true hub of student life, relevant, vibrant, and shaped by the needs of today’s students.”
The Students’ Association will continue to own and operate the venue, with bar staff remaining employed and managed by the Association. The partnership gives the site access to JDW’s operating model and supply chain while retaining local management.
‘A great asset’
JDW chief executive John Hutson said: “We are delighted that a Wetherspoon pub is to open at University of St Andrews and believe it will be a great asset for the students social life.”
The opening follows a series of university partnerships for JDW over the past year, including sites at the University of Birmingham and the University of Surrey, as the company continues to expand its franchise estate alongside its managed pub business.
On top of this, JDW also opened its first pub abroad this year, at Alicante Airport in Spain, and increased its presence in the capital, taking on the former Coyote Ugly on London’s Shaftsbury Avenue.
The pubco previously said it plans to open around 15 managed pubs and between 15 and 20 franchised pubs during the current financial year.
The latest opening also comes as JDW continues to grow sales despite wider cost pressures across the sector. In its third quarter trading update earlier this month, the group reported like-for-like sales growth of 3.4% and said it had opened eight pubs and 13 franchised sites year to date.
