Tuesday 16 December 2008

PubCo Scorched-Earth Policy

We know all too well that a whole set of factors is contributing to the decline in the pub trade: smoking ban, beer duty, the tie etc.

What really deeply and profoundly angers me is pubcos (including the regional and "family" brewers )selling underperforming  pubs with covenants prohibiting their future use as pubs. It's a bully-boy spoilsport activity whereby the pubco aims to reduce future competition for its remaining pubs.

If I own a car and decide to sell it, can I insist that the new owner never drives on a motorway? If I sell a guitar can I insist the new owner never plays a minor chord? 

No I bloody well can't. Just how are pubcos allowed to get away with this hateful behaviour?

This practise is destroying buildings we know and love as pubs that may be perfectly viable in different hands.

I know they're not the only ones, but here are Enterprise with a scorched-earth policy.


2 comments:

Unknown said...

Absolutely, this should be unlawful, I'd like CAMRA to tackle this one.

Boak said...

Absolutely. Surely there is no sane or logical argument for this practice, apart from the obvious benefit to the pubco?