TOPIC:

I think we need to heard from silinus on this, he manages the bull and castle so should be able to tell us if his business is increasing or decreasing.

I remember talking to him about it a few months back. He said a big issue is getting overdraft credit to buy stock and pay wages.

"n1mbus":13jvmv7t wrote: I remember talking to him about it a few months back. He said a big issue is getting overdraft credit to buy stock and pay wages.[/quote:13jvmv7t]

thats for any business these days

I think people are beginning to realise how ridiculous the price of a pint is here now that money is getting a bit scarce.

I was up in Enniskillen yesterday and tipped in to the linen hall (a Wetherspoon pub) for a bit of food and a drink. Had a pint Abbot ale on cask... £1.39!!!
WTF <!-- s:shock: --><img src="{SMILIES_PATH}/icon_eek.gif" alt=":shock:" title="Shocked" /><!-- s:shock: --> Asked him how much a pint of Guinness was, he said £1.99!

I was shocked at how cheap it was to drink up there!!

Anybody know how much excise we are paying on our pint?

&amp;quot;Saruman&amp;quot;:1rvmdb7d wrote: I think we need to heard from silinus on this, he manages the bull and castle so should be able to tell us if his business is increasing or decreasing.[/quote:1rvmdb7d]

[i:1rvmdb7d]I'm quite happy to share my thoughts as an ICB member.[/i:1rvmdb7d]

Nine out of ten bars that have closed, or are in trouble deserve what they get. Not only have they pidgeon holed the public by having limited stock lines, but they have charged insulting prices for the privilage of mixing with the "in" crowd, or being in a watering hole with a fancy address.
We have also over paid for entertainment, service and cleanliness that should all be standard as far as the hospitality trade is concerned.

One thing i have noticed is the public demand for respect and value for their hard earned money (i earn mine the hard way and also expect respect), but also the demand for choice.And i don't just mean having hundreds of products available, but having a proper pricing structure.

Also, for too long, pubs and restaurants have been owned and operated by builders, solicitors and even artists, not by actual publicans. Where are they now?

[i:1rvmdb7d]As a bar manager[/i:1rvmdb7d]

I can tell you that we are actually showing an increase in business, on top of last year. And i'm not embarassed to say we have done our job properly, regardless of what some might say.

Why the increase? - better service/product knowledge, pricing structure, choice,decent customer base, proper advertising/management of budgets, and a good relationship with our suppliers.

Some may beg to differ, but pick the 10 nearest business' to ourselves and see how they are managing.I can think of only one that would get my hard earned cash, and even that's hit & miss.

The public have lost the beer goggles, and gone to specsavers, and now they see the rip-off. For my money, decently owned/managed business' will survive. People will still spend their money in bars and clubs, provided they are treated with respect and recieve value for money.

As it's late i won't be checking for tpyo's, apologies for any grammatical error's.

&amp;quot;silenus&amp;quot;:1c2wdeif wrote: I can tell you that we are actually showing an increase in business, on top of last year. [/quote:1c2wdeif]
Great to hear, and long long long may it continue.

&amp;quot;silenus&amp;quot;:1c2wdeif wrote: And i'm not embarassed to say we have done our job properly, regardless of what some might say.[/quote:1c2wdeif]
Nor should you be. It's clear from being in there regularly over the last couple of years that the number of people in the beer hall has ballooned, with thursdays and fridays especially being jammed. Finally people are starting to see the value of their money.

If I'm buying a drink, I want a drink that's worth paying for, not a bloody pint of guinness thrown at me. I don't even mind paying 'over the odds' for something, if it's something worth paying over the odds for - a Guinness in Cafe Insane is certainly not.