Part of a Conversation with a Publican

The pubcos should have been intensively training / encouraging lessees to look outside their immediate shop floor to the future of the industry instead of dumping every single last milligram of responsibility for all of it on their lessees' heads because that's cheap and easy to do. 'Entrepreneurs are better at running businesses than we are' bullshite they simply have taken no responsibility for development of the pub sector because they aren't in it for anything more than EBITDA and cash in the trouser pocket.

Again yes re Tim Martin. He's very good and has

Clarity such that he never will return calls to Fair Pint - I assume because he knows his long term interests are for the tie to remain.

Without the tie he will have to make sure there are no fruit flies or sticky tables in his 900 pubs.

Just good pubs that are really focused on their local community doing what good pubs always have - being personable, welcoming, comfortable and a home from home. And it has to be clean and perceived as being good value as well.

That is the formula for success in all pubs. You know, all the kind of stuff you know inside out.

These things are what are lacking so much in the chain branded operations whether Wetherpsoons or Whateverspoons

As far as the pub sector in general is concerned - the pub sector that PMA reports on - it all revolves around accumulated, aggregated, compounded figures and data - there is no place for authenticity, no place for 'character' 'individuality' or 'quirkiness' in pubs. These weird things have to be quantifiable and must be nailed down into costs that fall out of a spreadsheet.

Interior design companies come up with all the above 'unique facets' that make the best branded chain pubs seem, on the face of it, 'independent' and good places to visit when more often than not they are nothing more than catering vending machines pumping out as much product as possible.

'Value' has been reduced to items of decor and the cheapest possible 'offer' relative to the quality of the furnishings.