BEER giant Heineken has announced plans to invest £39million to help reopen 62 previously shuttered British pubs.
The global brewing house, which owns over 2,400 UK pubs under the Star Pubs & Bars brand, will reopen dozens of new sites by the end of 2024.
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It will also invest hundreds of thousands of pounds to renovate 94 of its current watering holes.
By the end of the year, Heineken aims to have reopened 156 such pubs since the start of 2023, reducing the number of closed pubs in its estate to pre-pandemic levels.
The beer giant is looking to transform tired pubs in suburban areas into premium locals to help get people back out with a reason to make the trip.
Star Pubs has already reopened two new pubs in Witham and Averley, Essex this month.
The Cherry Tree in Witham reopened last weekend following a £180,000 upgrade.
The Crown & Anchor in Aveley started pouring pints again last week thanks to a £244,000 refurbishment.
The Wildmoor Oak at Wildmoor near Bromsgrove will then swing open its doors later this month after a £513,000 revamp.
Other pubs that are earmarked for major investments to reopen this year include:
- The Black Bull, Ecclesfield, Sheffield
- The Hesketh Tavern, Cheadle Hulme, Cheadle, Stockport
- The Junction, Wombwell, South Yorkshire
- The Manvers Arms, Radcliffe on Trent, Nottinghamshire
- The Punch Bowl, West Hallam, Derbyshire
- The Rose of Denmark, Bristol
- Roxy’s Steak & Tap, Twickenham
- The Talbot, Cheslyn Hay, Staffordshire
- The Winterton Arms, Chiddingfold, Surrey
HEINEKEN’S UK HISTORY
HEINEKEN N.V. is a Dutch multinational brewing company, founded in 1864 by Gerard Adriaan Heineken in Amsterdam.
The beer giant’s operations in the UK date back to 1864 when it first started exporting beer to the UK market.
It wasn’t until the late 2000s that Heineken expanded its British presence to a whole new level when it acquired Scottish and Newcastle (S&N).
The British brewer, which owned big-name brands including Strongbow, Bullmers, John Smith’s and Newcastle Brown Ale, was snapped up by Heineken in 2008.
The acquisition also saw thousands of S&N’s pubs transfer ownership, and Heineken soon rebranded them as Star Pubs & Bars.
As of 2024, Heineken runs over 2,400 of these sites.
The beer giant also produced over 300 brands and 165 breweries worldwide.
Big-name brands produced by Heineken also include:
- Amstel
- Moretti
- Tiger
- Desperados
- Red Stripe
- Kingfisher
- Old Mout Cider
Lawson Mountstevens, Star Pubs’ Managing Director, said: “People are looking for maximum value from visits to their local.
“They want great surroundings and food and drink as well as activities that give them an extra reason to go out, such as sports screenings and entertainment.
“Pubs have proved their enduring appeal and after all the disruption of recent years, Star is on track to have the lowest number of closed pubs since 2019.
“It’s a tribute to the drive and entrepreneurship of licensees and the importance of continued investment.”
“We’ve spent more than £200million upgrading and maintaining our pubs over the last five years, and we’ll continue to invest to keep them open and thriving.”
However, while Star Pubs is seeing major new investment, other pub businesses are battling to stay on the high street.
HARD TIMES FOR THE HOSPITALITY INDUSTRY
Many food and drink chains have been struggling as the rise in the cost of living has led to fewer people spending on eating and drinking out.
Businesses had been struggling to bounce back after the pandemic, only to be hit with soaring energy bills and inflation.
Multiple chains have been affected, resulting in big-name brands like Wetherspoons and Frankie & Benny’s closing branches.
Some chains have not survived, including Byron Burger which fell into administration last year, with owners saying it would result in the loss of over 200 jobs.
Whitbread plans to close more than 200 locations across the UK in favour of building more hotel rooms.
The hotel and restaurant company has around 840 sites across the UK and owns brands including Premier Inn, Beefeater and Brewers Fayre.
Pizza giant Papa Johns is shutting down 43 of its stores soon.
Tasty, the owner of Wildwood, also said it will shut sites as part of major restructuring plans.
The brand plans to close 20 loss-making restaurants after a “challenging” start to the year.
Meanwhile, Stonegate has raised fears about its survival as it races to plug its debts.
Revolution Bars recently announced plans for an overhaul which could see 12 of its bars shut down after already shutting six.
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