So you want to run a pub?

Many people dream of giving up their job in favour of running a pub or country inn. Their vision is of foaming tankards of ale, delicious freshly prepared food and customers queuing at the doors at opening time. But the reality is often very different and running a pub demands specific talents.

Motives

Interviewers of prospective managers or tenants have, with good reason, come to be wary of certain motives:

• "I want to escape from the rat race."
• "We're retiring soon and I think it would be nice to run a pub."
• "It's a business and a roof over our heads as well."
• "My husband has always wanted to run a pub."

These are the people who do not know what entering the pub trade means.

Objectives

Take a look at the reasons you want to run a pub. Are they to:

• Offer a service to the community?
• Primarily make money?
• Enjoy a certain lifestyle?
• Exploit your particular talents for hospitality?
• Be your own boss?

The best answer may be a mix of the above and a few more besides.

Skills and qualifications

In the past, the pub trade was often seen as the home of the amateur. People spoke of retiring to run a pub as though it was something anyone could do. Happily, this view is now more rare.

To run a pub, you need a good mix of skills and talents, including:

• Personnel skills to recruit, retain and inspire staff
• The ability to create a good environment for customers
• Financial skills to fully understand the way the pub operates and influence its profitability
• The ability to work hard and cope with long hours
• Marketing skills to attract new custom
• Technical skills to run a good cellar and a kitchen that produces quality food punctually and consistently
• Customer service skills

If you add to this the job knowledge needed, such as a basic understanding of wine and the law on hygiene, health and safety, licensing, employment, VAT, PAYE and tax, you can see that being a licensee is a highly skilled profession.

Qualifications are becoming more important. There are a number of training courses on offer from colleges, universities and various organisations, and some of the larger pubs and breweries have in-house training.

Experience

However good the training, there's no substitute for experience. A salaried manager with a brewery or pub operator will have completed not only a training course of perhaps 12 weeks or more, but also many months as a relief manager in several pubs.

Justice's licence

To be a licensee as manager, tenant or owner, you need to have a justice's licence. Initially, you usually apply to the Licensing Bench of the local magistrates' court for a Protection Order (a form of provisional licence) and then for a Full Licence - a "licence to sell liquor for consumption on or off the premises". At either of these two stages you will be quizzed by the magistrates on your ability to run the pub named in your application.

The police may visit you at home and will make enquiries to find out whether you have a criminal record. If you have a conviction, it's much better to declare it and speak to the police and, if possible, the Clerk to the Justices, to see beforehand if your application has any chance of success.

Even if you have no conviction but are known to have associated with undesirable people, the police may still object.

The National Licensee's Certificate, awarded by the British Institute of Innkeeping, aims to raise the standards of those who run public houses. The exam covers basic licensing law and the social responsibilities of licensees. Some magistrates see this certificate as a key factor in assessing an applicant's merit and can be reluctant to grant a justice's licence without it or approved training.

When you appear in court to get a licence, make sure you are well briefed in advance and understand the procedures. Most licensing committees have policy documents that are worth getting hold of. You can also choose to use a solicitor or a licensed house broker.

Make sure you are suitably dressed and observe court etiquette by using "Sir" or "Madam" to address the justices.

Your licence is subject to renewal at three-year intervals.

Health and stamina

Good health is important in any job, but if you run a pub it's critical. The character and personality of the landlord are significant too, not only in setting the style and tone of the business but also in relating to customers.

Market research has shown that the landlord's character is a major factor in the customers' decision to visit. Therefore you can't have too many days off sick. The long hours, seven-day opening and the physical nature of the work are tough. And there's work to do before and after you open. A 12-hour working day is quite normal.

Also for landlords who live above their pub, there can be the problem of not being able to escape from work.

And there are the hazards of over-indulgence. With food available much of the time, there is the temptation to have too much or eat at the wrong time. And the same applies to alcohol.

Temperament

It helps to be able to keep calm in a crisis, be even-tempered with awkward customers, be clear-headed when making financial judgements and be patient when listening to the woes of regular customers.

Most pubs are run by a man and woman team. The stress on their relationship is often extreme. Rows need to be kept private as an "atmosphere" can be bad for trade. Often, children can feel neglected and parents torn between the needs of the family and the needs of the business.

Rewards

Now we've looked at what skills and talents you need to run a pub, let's look at what you can get out of it.

Non-material rewards:

• Experiencing happy customers and gaining regular patrons
• Satisfaction in a professionally run business where you are the driving force
• Providing employment - in a rural area you may well be the biggest employer
• Having a certain standing in the community
• Gaining friends
• If you are a tenant or owner, you will be your own boss

Material rewards:

While there is no guarantee of making a profit, given the right pub in a good area and with skilled management, the business should be profitable.

Before allowing for loan repayments or rent, an efficient pub can make a net profit of more than 20% and even as much as 30% of VAT-exclusive turnover.

Running a pub demands a great deal. Rewards are related not just to effort but skill and flair. You can't simply try to do your best if this is not as good as your competitors.

This is an edited version of So you want to run a pub? chapter one in Michael Sargent and Tony Lyle's book Successful Pubs & Inns, published by Butterworth-Heinemann.

To buy this book, click here.