Location, Location, Location
Mark S. Elliott has spent 25 years working in various management roles within the tenanted and leased divisions of the UK's largest breweries and pub companies. His extensive knowledge and day-to-day involvement with pubs and publicans make him well qualified to know what is required to run a successful pub. He shares his knowledge and many 'insider tips' with you in this book. Mark is based in Cockermouth, Cumbria.
LOCATION, LOCATION, LOCATION
Catchment area and trading style
Location is crucial for a pub’s success. A pub’s location, together with its style of operation, will determine which customers use it. For example, a traditional local pub mainly attracts customers from its immediate vicinity. Most of these customers will walk to the pub. Its catchment area may only be a radius of a quarter of a mile. A destination food pub, on the other hand, attracts customers travelling by car and from a much wider area. A catchment area of 15 miles radius is not uncommon.
Once you find a pub that may be suitable, ask yourself some questions:
- What kind of clientele does the pub attract currently?
- What types of people live within its catchment area?
- Are there enough potential customers to build trade further?
- Could the style of operation be changed to attract more customers?
- Which other pubs would you be competing with?
- Is anything in the area going to change that might affect trade?
Prominence and visibility
An attractive, prominently positioned pub, acts as its own advertisement. Pubs that are visible to the public have a higher profile than those that are hidden. High-street locations, main roads and roundabouts are prominent, sought-after locations. Less prominent pubs need to work harder at communicating with their customers and potential customers. These can be a success and there are many examples of hidden gems.
Footfall and traffic
These are two pieces of jargon used to describe how many potential customers there are in the immediate vicinity of the pub. In other words, how busy the area is. A pub located on the high street may have thousands of potential customers walking by each day. Another pub, located only a hundred metres away, in a side street, may only have several hundred potential customers walking by. Obviously, the pub on the high street will have a greater potential to attract customers than the one situated in a side street. It is worth checking how busy a location is at different times of day and on different days of the week.
Personal considerations
The location of your pub should be within easy reach of other facilities that are important to you. If you have children, the quality and proximity of the local schools will be of concern, as may leisure facilities and hospitals. Local issues like levels of crime may be significant and should be investigated. Transport links may be a factor for family and other support network contacts. Put simply, would the area be somewhere you would enjoy living and is it practical for your lifestyle?
