LAST ORDERS

The Town Pubs Still Surviving On Drinks Alone

Running a successful pub is increasingly difficult, with the rising cost of living and changing drinking habits contributing to the closure of an average of 32 pubs in England and Wales every week in 2022. AAH visited two town centre pubs, The Stout House in the Carfax and The Bear in Market Square, to see how they’re adapting to the current social and economic climate…

OLDE WAYS...

As suggested by the traditional signage over the door, Ye Old Stout House is one of the town centre’s oldest pubs. The name ‘King & Barnes’ is still displayed prominently, although Horsham’s most famous brewery was taken over by Hall and Woodhouse in 2000. The brewery continues to own the pub, along with others nearby such as The Olive Branch and The Hornbrook Inn, and about a dozen more across the Horsham District alone.

The Stout House landlord Simon Edwards also runs The Bear – just a stone’s throw away –and The Foresters Arms in Kirdford. Since September 2022, the two Horsham pubs have been managed by Kieran Gasson. Kieran formerly worked at The Tipsy Fox in Southwater, before moving to the Carfax to manage a ‘wet pub’, a pub that relies solely on drinks for revenue. Kieran said: ‘The Tipsy Fox has a high footfall, as it attracts walkers and riders from the Downs Link, as well as groups and families visiting for food. But it doesn’t have the regulars that a drinks-only pub attracts and I wanted that experience. They are fun to manage, as you develop a relationship with regulars.’

FURST QUENCHER...

However, there are not quite as many familiar faces in pubs as there used to be, as social habits have changed. Many of us now choose to enjoy alcohol in the comfort of our own home, while an increasing number of micro-breweries are selling beer through tap rooms, offering a different kind of drinking experience which appeals to craft ale aficionados. Being a brewery-owned pub means that The Stout House is limited in terms of which drinks it offers, with staples including Badger Best Bitter, Fursty Ferret, Wicked Wyvern and Tangle Foot.

The shift from laborious jobs comprising a mostly local workforce, towards more commuting for office-based jobs with flexible hours, has also contributed to the demise of pubs. ‘People drink less socially nowadays,’ says Kieran. ‘It used to be the case that people would finish work and pop down the pub for a pint before going home, but that isn’t the norm anymore. People of my generation hardly ever go to the pub after work and that’s one of the reasons it’s becoming more of an art form to run a drinks-only pub, as the bulk of our trade comes from Thursday evening through to the end of Sunday.’

YOU’VE GOT A FRIEND...

So, how can pubs survive? One option is food, of course. Serving a hearty meal has revived the fortunes of many, particularly in rural locations. The Crown at Dial Post, The Green Man in Partridge Green and The Chequers at Rowhook are just three examples of village pubs that thrive on their culinary reputation. Indeed, of all of Hall and Woodhouse’s pubs in the Horsham District (which include The Fox Inn at Rudgwick, The Six Bells in Billingshurst, The Blue Ship in The Haven, The Dragon at Colgate, The Crabtree in Lower Beeding and The Boars Head in Horsham) only two don’t serve food, and The Norfolk Arms in Roffey at least offers street food from outside vendors. However, there are no plans for The Stout House to follow suit.

Kieran said: ‘One of the things I like about it is the atmosphere. It is more relaxed, as we don't have to worry about customers sitting down for a meal, and the bar staff have time to get to know customers. You can talk over a drink, but not a plate of food. When regulars come in, we can easily end up talking to them for 20 minutes about work and life, and you develop a kind of friendship. When that happens, it doesn’t feel like work at all. It doesn’t take long for that to happen either, as everyone who walks through the door is important. On their first visit, they’re checking the pub’s atmosphere and the experience on offer; on the second, they’re testing for consistency; if they come back a third time, you’ve got a new friend!’

BYE BILLIARDS...

To attract a younger clientele, The Stout House is changing. Out has gone the bar billiards table – the last one in the town centre – and in has come a jukebox and retro artwork inspired by Hollywood’s golden age. A beautiful ten-pump ‘bridge’ font has been installed too, giving the bar a more contemporary look.

Rather than a menu, both The Stout House and The Bear are hoping that a varied music programme will attract punters. Kieran said: ‘One of the first things we did was to host a Live Lounge-style event for musicians on a Friday night. We have since introduced Dance Away Your Saturday, either hosting a band or DJ Mark Tavener. At The Bear, we have Funk It Up Friday and Showcase Saturday, mostly with bands. The Bear has an unusual layout and when you have a six-piece band playing, they take up a lot of space. Yet on Christmas Eve, we welcomed Sugar Honey and still managed to fit in about 80 people.’

MORRIS MEMORIES...

The Stout House is traditionally a favourite with Morris sides, who turn out annually for the Broadwood Day of Dance. By trading billiards for a jukebox, it could be suggested that the pub is losing some of its heritage and traditions. However, Kieran says that isn’t the case. ‘As much as we have to change, we recognise that the pub has a certain status. Pubs have ups and downs and people fall in and out of love with them. A pub can go through a period where it caters for a certain market and then that can change suddenly. Our customer base is mostly aged 25 to 50, and while we need to modernise, that won’t be at the loss of the memories in the walls. The Stout House remains an over-21s pub and is very welcoming. I hope that anyone who might not like the changes can at least understand the reasons behind them.’

BEAR ESSENTIALS...

Kieran’s other pub, The Bear, will undergo a mini-refurbishment of its own in February. This will see the walls adorned with random objects, artefacts and memorabilia, with the landlord inspired by a bar he visited on holiday. One thing that won’t be going anywhere though is the wooden bear sculpture above the entrance. It was removed in 2018 due to a dry rot problem, causing something of a stir amongst the locals and creating headlines in the County Times, before being returned to its usual berth after restoration by Hall and Woodhouse.

The Bear is now free-of-tie, meaning it can offer a greater variety of spirits, wines and soft drinks, after renewing its contract with another brewery, Red Oak Taverns. Its new look will be partly designed to cater for the younger crowd the pub attracts.

Kieran said: ‘The Bear is different to any other pub in Horsham. It feels like an old-school boozer and that’s not a bad thing. It isn’t somewhere that lots of people walk by, being tucked away in Market Square, and perhaps that’s why it tends to attract the regular following and custom that it has.’