Through my connections with South Beds CAMRA, I recently received an email from a resident of a local village who was concerned at the closure of a local pub.
The pub in question has been standing for almost two hundred years and is certainly considered to be one of the most traditional pubs in the area. Fortunately, we’ve since discovered that the pub in question will not have a restrictive covenant in place (a restrictive covenant restricts the future use of a property – in this instance ensuring that a closed pub can never again be re-opened as a pub) but it still throws up a number of issues which require careful consideration.
All too often, unfortunately, the very people who lodge appeals against pub closures and restrictive covenants are those who never (or rarely) use the pub other than to enjoy a glass of tonic water on two evenings during the summer. The fact of the matter is that we’re all using pubs less and less and this is as good for them as it would be for any other business.
I’m the last person to want to see any pub close, be it temporarily or permanently. Pubs are the hubs of their communities and play a vital part not only in community cohesion, but in boosting the local economy and furthering the sadly-declining morsel of human interaction. That said, we cannot simply sit by and enjoy looking at these pubs before complaining when they close. If you want your local pub to stay open, you need to visit regularly (at least once a week) and ensure that you help them to help you.
Any pub closure is always bad news, but the lesson is a simple one: use it or lose it.
What do you think? Are pub closures inevitable or can they be reversed? What do you see as the secret to halting the decline of the great British pub?
June 28th, 2011 - 4:15 pm
I came into the pub trade in 1993 and this was also during a recession and I had to learn quickly that you have to give people a reason to visit. You cant simply open the doors and expect people to come, you have to drive your business every minute of a trading day. I dont just mean by running promotion after promotion but actively hosting on the shop floor.
Customers want to feel welcome and valued and to feel the money they spend is worthwhile as they rarely leave with anything for their purchase other than a full belly and/or a happy feeling. Unfortunately I believe the days of the publican as we knew it has gone as he/she spends 80% of a working day buried away in the office.