Pub chain
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
A pub chain is a group of pubs owned by a single company, although the term usually refers to chains in the United Kingdom. Examples include Wetherspoons, The Walkabout, All Bar One and the Eerie Pub Company. Pubs in the chain are typically branded with the same name, however the former "Firkin" pubs tended to be variations on a theme including the word Firkin in the title. Wetherspoons pubs also have individual name, although the Wetherspoons brand is still prominently displayed.
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[edit] Types
In the United Kingdom, there are two types of pub chains reflecting the ownership of the pub and the style of operations. Pubs are either tenanted or managed.
Pub chains such as Punch Taverns and Enterprise Inns own thousands of tenanted pubs which are not branded and retain uniqueness.
Pub chains operating managed houses are frequently run as brands, located near a high street but rarely in predominantly residential areas.
Multiple-held pubs do exist in countries other than the United Kingdom, but due to most countries having different accepted systems of ownership and supply, they do not hold anywhere near the level of control over the market as they do in the UK.
[edit] Companies
[edit] Mitchells & Butlers
Mitchells & Butlers used to be the retail division of Bass plc, which rebranded in July 2001 to become Six Continents Retail, and again in April 2003 to its current name. The company owns All Bar One, Ember Inns, Edwards, Flares, O'Neills and Scream, as well as others. It is based in Birmingham.
[edit] Luminar Leisure
Chicago Rock Cafe and Jumpin Jaks are owned by 3D Entertainment, which is based in Milton Keynes. Previously they were owned by Luminar who now operate large nightclubs such as Oceana.
[edit] Laurel Pub Company
Laurel (based in Luton) acquired several pub chains using funding arranged by Robert Tchenguiz, including buying Bar Med and Slug & Lettuce from the administrators of SFI Group plc in June 2005 for £80m and also Yates's who were based in Bolton, Greater Manchester, in May 2005 for £202m. Laurel owns the HogsHead chain of high street bars. In April 2007 Laurel also acquired the La Tasca chain of tapas bars for £123m. Tchenguiz bought the company through his company R20 for £151m in November 2004.
[edit] Pitcher and Piano
Pitcher and Piano have been owned by Marstons since 1996.
[edit] Barracuda Group
Varsity, Barracuda Bars, Juniper Inns, Cape and Smith & Jones are owned by the Barracuda Group, who are based in Marlow, Buckinghamshire.
[edit] Hobgoblin
The Hobgoblin pubs are a chain in London and the south of England. They were owned by Wychwood Brewery until 2002.
