Antic pubs administration
Pubs operated by the Antic Collective are not owned by Antic themselves but by a series of separate limited companies. On 12 July, four of these companies, Elflock, Babel Silk, Brocade and De Gremio, were placed into administration. Between them they own the freeholds or leaseholds of 13 of the 23 pubs that Antic operate across London. They are:-
- Antelope, Tooting
- Balham Bowls Club, Balham
- Clapton Hart, Clapton
- Coopers, Crystal Palace
- Dogstar, Brixton
- East Dulwich Tavern
- Elephant and Castle
- Graveney & Meadow, Tooting
- Gremio de Brixton, Brixton
- Hagen & Hyde, Balham
- Red Lion, Leytonstone
- Tooting Tram and Social, Tooting
- Sun, Camberwell
Babel Silk also own three sites which are currently closed. The Propel Newsletter reported that some of the pubs had still not fully recovered from the effects of the pandemic and that both Elfcock and Brocade had recently been served with winding up petitions by creditors. Antic was previously funded by the private equity firm Downing but, apparently, this arrangement has ended although there is no suggestion that this played any part in the companies failing. The administrators regard the pubs as ‘going concerns’ and are placing them on the market, describing them as ‘representing a fantastic opportunity for investors and trade purchasers alike’. Most importantly, the pubs will continue to trade in the meantime. Watch this space…
Marston’s sell up
Readers will recall that, back in 2020, Marston’s (which, to be precise, was just the trading name of Wolverhampton & Dudley Breweries) and Carlsberg UK came to an arrangement whereby both companies’ breweries would be vested in a new, independent company called Carlsberg Marston’s Brewing Company (CMBC), which they would own jointly (60% Carlsberg and 40% Marston’s). This left Marston’s to operate simply as a pub company, although there was a long term supply agreement put in place for CMBC to brew and supply Marston’s with what had previously been their beers. It was reported at the time that Marston’s had debts of £1.39 billion. The deal was, in due course, approved by the Competition and Markets Authority.
Marston’s have now decided to sell their share in CMBC to Carlsberg UK for £206m. The sale was described as a disposal of Marston’s ‘non-core brewing assets’, although my understanding is that, whichever brewery site was used, all beers have been brewed by CMBC since 2020. This latest deal is simply the sale of Marston’s shareholding in CMBC. All the same, whether in actuality or spiritually, the deal marks the end of 150 years of brewing heritage, which started with Banks’s in 1875. Moreover, control of these breweries and brands now passes fully to a multinational brewer. This provoked a lot of reaction, with a number of commentators deploring the event. It could be argued however that the real damage has long since been done with the closure of the Jennings, Eagle, Wychwood and Ringwood breweries.
Carlsberg UK are also in the process of acquiring the soft drinks maker Britvic and it is understood that all of their UK operations will shortly be consolidated into one company called Carlsberg Britvic (CB), which, for them, is logical. There is already serious concern about their ‘Fresh Beer’ concept, which CAMRA continues to question, and this must now extend to CB’s commitment to cask-conditioned beer generally, although the supply agreement with Marston’s remains in place. CMBC have also been brewing Draught Bass under licence for AB InBev and the beer’s many devotees are similarly apprehensive.
Fuller’s sell pubs
At the end of May, Fuller’s announced that they were selling 37 wet led pubs to Chester based Admiral Taverns. Most of them are in Hampshire and Sussex and appear mostly to be pubs which Fuller’s acquired when they took over Gales Brewery in 2006. The price was quoted as £18.3 million. It brings Admiral’s portfolio to 1,420 mainly ‘community’ pubs. Only four of the pubs are in London. They are the Cocoanut in Kingston-Upon-Thames, the Little Windsor in Sutton, the Royal Standard in Croydon and the Six Bells in Brentford. I have already seen a Facebook post praising the change of beer range at the Royal Standard. The deal reflects what the respective companies want from their pubs.
Chris Jowsey, CEO of Admiral Taverns commented: “I’m delighted to welcome our new licensees to the Admiral team, and we’re excited by the opportunity to develop these pubs in partnership together. Recent years have seen Admiral build a strong track record in delivering profitable growth across our estate, underpinned by continuous targeted investment to unlock new opportunities, supporting community pubs to thrive. These 37 pubs are an excellent acquisition for our business, increasing our reach in the South-East of the UK.”
He continued “As 2024 Community Pub Operator of the Year, we look forward to working with licensees to develop their brand range and consumer offer to people in their local neighbourhood. Our focus on helping licensees to maximise the revenue potential of their pub will help them to build their business, whilst providing a vibrant social amenity for their community. Together, we look forward to growing the profitability of these pubs and ensuring they continue to develop as successful small businesses.”
Wetherspoon’s news
I pick up on a lot of articles about beer and pubs from local papers up and down the country. I find it odd that many seem to be obsessed with JDW’s closure of pubs. What makes it worse is that they rarely mention that the pubs in question have reopened under different operators, let alone that JDW themselves are opening new pubs. On that subject, the Lion & Unicorn at Waterloo Station, next to the large BrewDog outlet, will be opening soon. I’m also pleased to report that JDW have received both planning permission and a premises licence to convert the original entrance to Fulham Broadway Underground station into a pub. Given that the site is Grade II listed, the conversion works will however take some time.
Not for the first time, JDW have found themselves in an odd situation. A pub in Abergele, Denbighshire, decided to call itself ‘Wetherspoons Ltd’ even though it has no link to the company. This version of the name had, it seems, not previously been registered at Companies House and so the publican took his opportunity. The lawyers are now involved…
Kicking off
The new football season will be on us shortly. Shepherd Neame have increased the number of ‘pouring rights’ arrangements that they have with football clubs and now supply beer to newly-promoted Bromley, Gillingham, Millwall and Leyton Orient. There is an interesting story attached to the arrangement with the ‘Os’ which I shall report on in the next edition.
Sheps also continue to support local charities, with the Air Ambulance Charity Kent Surrey Sussex (KSS) becoming their Charity of the Year for 2024/25. They raised £30,000 for their previous charity of the year which was FareShare, who collect food that would otherwise go to waste and redistribute it for social good. FareShare have connections with the Felix Project and, in April, ten Sheps employees helped out at Felix’s depot in Poplar for a day.
Up early
To celebrate the Summer Solstice on 20 June this year, Adnams arranged a special tour of the iconic Southwold lighthouse. The only problem was that, to appreciate this special sunrise, the tour started at 4.15am!