News |Maidstone pubs


downsmail.co.uk Why pubs are fighting to survive


IT IS a trade that is worth £55m to the local area each year, but the pub industry has had its fair share of knocks in recent years. Drinking habits have changed,


and, with it, the make up of our pubs.Many have been lost along the way,while others are striving to find a niche that makes them stand out fromthe crowd. But there are signs of a resurgence.


Refits costing hundreds of thou- sands are being carried out on some pubs, while the revolution in real and craft ales is also helping. There are many success stories,


but also cautionary tales. James Souttar, the salaried manager of Drakes in Maidstone town centre, admits that the industry isnot some- thing hewould invest in. ButTheRoyalPaperMill, inTovil,


has hadwhat licenseeTrudyCollins describes as a “dire” spell. “We’re staying afloat,” she said.


“The last five months have been dire. Tradesmen haven’t got the work or the money, a long winter means lessmoney coming in.” Nationally, about 18 pubs aweek


are closing.There are various factors at play, but both the Campaign for Real Ale (CAMRA) and the British Beer and Pub Association (BBPA) point their fingers at one key factor. “About a third of the price of a


pint is nowtax, andthe average pub pays about £130,000 tax a year,” Brigid Simmonds, chief executive of the BBPAtoldDownsMail. “As a country,wepay around40%


of the amount raised by tax on beer in Europe, yet nationally we only drink about 12%of the product. “Business rates are also costly.


About 2.8% of the business rates in this country are paid by pubs, but there’s around 0.5% of the output.


Lots of other things impact pubs as well, such as occupational pen- sions.” Pubs have always been at the


heart of the community, andthis has been the case in places such as Ul- combe and Stockbury, where vil- lagers clubbedtogether to keeptheir locals open. The Trosley Heritage Groupis hoping to saveThePlough, which is closed, but has beenmade an “asset of community value”. The Swan in Loose is another pub


which prides itself on being at the heart of local people. “This pub has a strong commu-


nity bond,” landlady Wendy Leatt said. “People feel the need to keep the pub alive and so use it. “We put on food, events and ask


customers what they want. A pub should be the living room of the community. It’s theirs not yours,we just run it.” The gloomy headlines are there


for all to see, but Mrs Simmonds sees a brighter future. “If you don’t use it, you’ll lose it,”


she added. “I don’t believe it’s pos- sible to keep all of the pubs open, some historical pubs are not viable. “But I am positive about the in-


dustry. Nationwide, a billionmeals a year are sold, andthere are around 50,000 bedrooms in our pubs. “Wewant to encourage people to


drink anything – it doesn’t have to be alcoholic – in a safe environment like apub.Pubs areunique inBritish culture. “We’ve lost about 8,000 in thepast


fewyears and I believe local author- ities have a role to play in keeping themopen.”


Chef Steph Hinton andmanager James Souttar at Drakes Vegan food ‘gives us an edge’


A VEGAN kitchen is helping Drakes inMaidstone town centre stand out fromthe crowd. As one of the oldest pubs in the


town, Drakes is, manager James Souttar says, an alternative venue tomany of those elsewhere. “A lot of our regular customers


treat the pub as a bit of a safe haven,” he said. “There has always been an alternative vibe here and that’s what people like. “We are a hidden gem, but that


benefits us.” James has been manager at the


pub for almost three years, taking over when it re-opened after an 18- month closure due to flooding. The vegan kitchen opened its


doors late last year, giving a newdi- mension to the pub and opening it up to a wider clientele. “The kitchen is a separate entity to the pub,” he added. “There are


seven or eight in the chain and they have various kitchens. “Steph Hinton, the chef at the


Fortify Café was looking for a new premises,wewere put in touchwith her and it’s gone fromthere. “We’ve had people from as far


afield as Scotland and Paris come to try the food.” James has been in the pub trade


for 13 years, andworked in catering prior to that, so has seen the ups and downs. “If I hadmoney to invest, I’mnot


sure it would be in this trade,” he said. “Butwe’re doing ok here,we’re turning a profit. “The financial crash in 2008 has


changed drinking habits enor- mously. “It’s definitely that rather than


the smoking ban – even the smok- ers say they prefer the pubs now that there’s no smoke in them.”


It’s all about the beer at The Jug


DRINKING habits are definitely changing – and the rise in microp- ubs is taking advantage of that. Micropubs come in all shapes


and sizes – converted public toilets, shops andmore are home to them. The first one opened in Herne in


2005, and with almost 50 dotted around the county, Kent is the un- official home of themicropub. The Malling Jug became West


Malling’s first when it opened its doors inApril


2017, and a year on it is still going strong, with a wide range of ales fromall over the country on offer. Duty manager Shirley Everett (pictured) said: “Most pubs don’t


stock the quantity and quality of real ale thatwe do.Over theweek- end, we look to have between 12 and


14 casks on the go – it’s like having a beer festival every day. “It’s going really well here and


we get a lot of real ale fans fromall over the area come to visit us.” But it is not all about the beer – a


good wine selection and local ciders help bring in punters, while bottled lagers are also on offer. The beauty of these pubs,


though, lies in the people behind them. Shirley said: “When David [Catterall] set up the pub, it was more a hobby than a business. He


couldn’t find anywhere that sold the range of beers he liked. “We don’t open as long as tradi-


tional pubs do, and I think our cus- tomers appreciate that. It also meanswe can go outwhenwe shut at 9pm.” Without fruitmachines and juke-


boxes, micropubs are all about the beer. It’s a chance to try local ones and those fromfurther afield. “We have beers from Goacher’s


in Maidstone and Kent Brewery, which is in Birling,” Shirley says. “But we also have a supplier so


we can get beers from across the country, fromallmanner of differ- ent breweries.”


Landlord David Davenport has seenmany changes at The Flower Pot


We take pride in our range of ales


YOU cannot take your eye of the ball. That is the view of the landlord


of one of the town’s most success- ful boozers, which stands out for its beer. The Flower Pot, on Sandling


Road, is a three-times Kent Pub of the Year. Landlords David and Julie Davenport moved in to the pub in May 2006, and have seen a number of changes in their time. “There have been challenging


times,” David said. “Drinking habits have changed and so have the costs associated with running the pub – ourmargins are tight and then you have all the red tape, like a waste certificate that costs us hundreds of pounds. “We were the first pub to really


focus on real ale from around the country, but we’re always chang- ingwhatwe do and you have to be


on your toes.We are a proper beer pub and that’s what we pride our- selves on.” As well as the beer, the pub food on weekday


serves


lunchtimes and pizzas on Friday evenings, and hosts live music, in- cluding an ever-popular jam night on Tuesdays. “It was started two years before


we came here, and it’s still going strong,” says David. “It’s the longest-running one inMaidstone. “We don’t get a lot of passing


trade,we either have locals or peo- ple coming for the ale or themusic. “The internet is a double-edged


sword – it helps promote the gigs, but one bad review can make a lot of difference.We had a poor one on Google, so I contacted the person to ask why they’d given us a low score, but they never got back to me.”


downsmail.co.uk


Maidstone pubs |News


Brewers ‘investing heavily in future’


SHEPHERDNeame brewery has been synonymouswith theKent beer scene for more than 300 years, but they too have had troubled times over the past few years. But the corner has been


turned, and they are now look- ing to the future, and investing heavily in their pubs. Aprime example of that isThe


Market House, in Earl Street, Maidstone, which reopened at the end ofApril after a £900,000, three-month refit. Pubmanager LouDavies said:


“Not being fromthis area, Iwas- n’t too familiar with Shepherd Neame before Imoved here. “But it’s great to be part of


such a historic company and to see the investment they are put- ting into their pubs. “The refit here is great, and


we’ve been able to work with our area manager to make this pub as good as can be.” The pub was previously


known as Earl’s and had a repu- tation for being one of the town’s leading music venues. That has been retained, and a newmenu runs alongside it. “There are somany restaurants


down this road, there’s little point us trying to compete with them,” she added. “Our menu has a lot of tapas-style dishes, with flavours from all over the world. “We only have three main


dishes and they’re all £10 each, and we also have a simple but tasty brunchmenu.


Manager Lou Davies “We also have plenty of


healthy options too, so we’re all excited for the future.” Shepherd Neame remains a


family business at its core, and chief executive Jonathan Neame hopes that refits like this one will benefit the company going forward. “We own a large number of


unique pubs in unique locations with great character and interest- ing histories,” he said. “Through good times and bad,we continue to invest in such outlets, whilst disposing of pubs that no longer fit our profile. “This continuous investment


and ongoing search for ways to enhance our offer and to provide an authentic, high quality expe- rience is one of the reasons why our business has survived for so long.”


Electronics and games ‘could play their part’


HYBRID pubs with more activities and games could become more prominent in the future. That’s the view of an industry ex-


pert, who points to the rise of bars such as Bounce and Flight Club in London. Ed Bedington, editor of TheMorn-


ing Advertiser, the trusted fort- nightly pub trade magazine with a circulation of 30,000, believes the marketplace is different from the one that he knew as a younger drinker, but insists that pubs can get through this. “The good pubs that are adapting


to the current trends are the ones which are thriving. Those who don’t


adapt are struggling,” he explains. “Youngsters these days don’t nec-


essarilywant to go out drinking. The first drink at 18 isn’t quite the rite of passage it once was – a lot of youngsters are tee-total and some who do drink are happy to pay pre- miumprices. It’s aboutmaking sure that cocktails look good and can be posted on Instagram. “The days of going out on Friday


and Saturday nights are not what they used to be. “It’s about making sure they can


get things when they’re out that they can’t get at home.” So it seems that drink prices are not the biggest obstacle to ensuring


that people come through the doors. Pubs are competing with su- permarkets on drinks,”Mr Bedington said. “But they are also competing withNetflix, cinemas and casual din- ing. People want to have great food and great drinks. They want to have beers,wines and cocktails they can’t get at home and a great food offer that can’t be replicated with a su- permarketmeal deal. “The smoking ban forced publi-


cans to look at other avenues and many of themlooked at food. Itwas an opportunity to offer good food without having other people sitting next to customers smoking.” Table tennis bar Bounce and darts venue


Flight Club are both based in the city, but there is no reasonwhy they won’t spread further. Mr Bedington added: “I think we


will see a rise in hybrid pubs, offer- ing more activities. I think we’ll see electronics and gaming playing a part too. I think these things can be a bit cyclical, and the next genera- tionmay be into drinking again. “The Millennials seem to be re-


belling against their parents, so per- haps the next generation will drink as their parentsmay not have done somuch.” TheMorning Advertisermerged in


recent years with The Publican newspaper.


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Malling May 2018


Mallling May 2018


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