The development of pub marketing in the UK

Abstract

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to look at the changing relationship between brewers and pub owners. The paper considers the acquisition of British public houses by brewers and the introduction of national brands supported by advertising. The recent separation of brewing from pub ownership has brought about different types of public houses and different methods of marketing the outlets and the products offered.Design/methodology/approachThe objectives are achieved by examining a variety of written material relating to public houses and brewers in different periods as well as more modern sources to allow an assessment of the changing pub and the advertising techniques employed.FindingsBrewers advertise their products. When they also owned pubs, the promise of these products acted as advertising for the pubs. Now that brewers own only a small number of pubs, the different techniques have to be employed to attract customers.Practical implicationsThe paper suggests that managed and rented estates have evolved, with different ways of marketing themselves. This paper may help to develop a practical approach to their promotion.Originality valueThe separation in ownership of brewers and pub owners is well enough known. The implications on group advertising have been largely ignored. This paper starts to address that gap.