STYLE OF OPERATION

Breweries and pub companies often categorise their pubs into different styles of operation. These categories are used in advertisements and by brewery and pub company recruiters to help their recruitment process and also to target marketing activity. It is helpful to know something about this when looking for a suitable pub.

The procedure involves banding similar pubs together. Breweries and pub companies do use slightly different terminology to describe the same categories. Some of the more regularly used ones are given below, together with their main characteristics:

• Young Persons’ Venue (YPV) – Main clientele are in the 18–30 age range. Venues are typically located in town or city centres with an emphasis on music, trendy drinks and a modern up-to-date image. They often have high staffing levels as speed of service is important during busy periods. Food is sometimes available, although this may be snack or fast food.
• Traditional local – Traditional pubs are located in built-up residential neighbourhoods. They can be male orientated with an emphasis on pub games, sport and traditional drinks. Local customers from the immediate vicinity, travel to the pub on foot. The pub fosters a sense of community. The food offering is often limited.
• Destination food pub – This is a ‘drive-to’ pub with a high proportion of food sales. Customers are drawn from a wide area. There is an emphasis on quality of food and good service. They are often located in rural areas. Wine and soft drinks are popular.

Other categories include: Live Music Venues (LMVs), Student pubs and Sports pubs.