I’ve been unable to make any time over the past few weeks to sit down and document what’s been happening with the pub. Suffice to say that its been all go and that we managed to get through the refurbishment without too much trauma and are now open for trading.

Our first week or so of being open to the public has had its highs and lows but we have worked very hard to adapt, improvise and overcome these teething troubles. There are still a few issues that need addressing such as our electrics seeming to have a mind of their own but, in general, the more time that Martin and I spend in the pub the more we are getting a feeling for the place and therefore able to spot potential problems before they arise. Our learning curve continues to be vertical.

We have been amazed at the level of encouragement and support we have received from the surrounding businesses. With the pub having being closed for the best part of a year our neighbours have expressed their relief that the frontage has been greatly improved and is no longer an eyesore with metal shuttering and a tatty exterior.

Offers of help have come from every sector and we are also proud to now be members of the Tollcross traders association who’s tireless campaigning for the area has helped tremendously in getting us established as a new business.

There have obviously been downsides to getting open, for example we knew the pubco was prone to telling a few untruths but we were quite taken aback by some of the bare faced lies that they spouted. It only reinforced our attitude that we cannot under any circumstances take whatever the pubco now says as the truth until it is backed up with action.

It’s quite possibly endemic in big businesses as we have been spun lines from some big companies who just haven’t been able, or bothered, to come up with the goods, including 3663, Brakes and Waverley TBS leading us up the garden path.

What I have also found interesting is the number of scam merchants we seem to have attracted. I guess this is linked to the pub opening and word getting round that there are new guys on the block. We have been offered everything from “legal” SKY at £100 a month to total pest control solutions at £500 a month. I don’t imagine what size of mice they thought we may have but we would be cheaper hiring a big game hunter to patrol the building.

The biggest scam was from an ADT, a large alarm company. Our manager signed what he thought was a form to enable a survey to be done on our existing system. There were no figures or details on the form just a few boxes for signatures etc. The salesman then took it away and subsequently informed me that we now had signed up to a five year contract with them, and as it had been signed by the manager it was a legally binding document. It went in the bin. A total scam from a company that should know better, avoid.

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The missives have been signed so I guess its an appropriate time to divulge the name and location of the pub. It’s called the Illicit Still and is situated in the Tollcross area of Edinburgh city centre.

The pubs locality has undergone significant change over the past few years. Traditional industries such as brewing and iron works are being replaced with a mix of high quality residential apartments, student accommodation and financial institutions. HBOS, Standard Life and Scottish Widows whose combined staff will number well in excess of six thousand after the completion of the newest phase of office building, are all within 500mtrs.

Tollcross is home to the Kings theatre and Cameo cinema with the world famous Usher hall nearby. These entertainment venues bring a wealth of people in to the area in the evenings as do the many quality restaurants that surround them.

Residents in the area number approximately fifteen thousand. Provision for a further two and a half thousand people is nearing completion adjacent to the recently renovated canal basin which is close by.

We think that it’s a cracking spot and although the pub is relatively small we hope that we can deliver an intimate pub with bags of character that will appeal to the surrounding businesses during the day and mixed population of students and residents in the evening.

Before we can get up, running and trading the refurbishment has to be finished. Its not going as quickly as we expected but we are still aiming to open on the date we have set.

It’s a really exciting and interesting time for us especially as we both work full time in education. Its proving to be hard work and a bit of challenge

The adrenaline is flowing and our sleeves have been rolled up in anticipation for the hard graft to come over the next few weeks. I am totally convinced that we can do it, others do not seem to have our confidence. We shall just have to wait and see who’s right.

Technorati Tags: tollcross, the illicit still, pub, drink, hbos, standard life, scottish widows

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After a lot of consultation and discussion we instructed our lawyer to conclude missives this morning.

It was a relief.

The contractors can now be authorised to start the refurbishment of the premises and we can now get down to refining our sketchy plans regarding opening dates, beer and food offers, marketing and publicity and all the other stuff that goes with opening a city centre pub that has been closed for the best part of a year.

Once the pubco was informed that everything had been tied up my phone started ringing off the hook again, this time it wasn’t lawyers but suppliers who had been eagerly waiting in the wings for the paperwork to be completed so they could attempt to sell us their wares.

After what seems like waiting an absolute age doing innumerable amounts of paperwork, taking part in many discussions, taking and making literally hundreds of phone calls, having a pile of meetings and a whole load more, the excitement of taking what amounts to a huge step towards getting the pub open is beginning to kick back in again.

I must admit that I felt that it had all sort of faded away over the past few weeks, possibly having been buried away somewhere under the mountains of administration or been pushed aside by the seething frustration of waiting for things to happen.

I found out today that it was still there and boy what a rush. A heady mixture of fear, adrenaline, hope, expectation with a hint of desperation and a smattering of a dozen or so other emotions.

What I need to do now is harness the rush and use it to inspire me to keep focussed, motivated and energised.

Technorati Tags: pub, publogger, deal, beer, wine, pubco

The past few days have been frantic. I don’t know why it’s happening but questions that should have been asked ages ago by both sets of lawyers have only gotten round to being discussed and resolved.

Legal issues that I thought would have been addressed at the outset of our journey to secure the lease on the pub are only just being tied up minutes before the missives for the pub are due to be signed.

There’s been horse trading left right and centre, subsequently each time my phone rings I can hardly bear to answer as it’s usually just another complication. It can be tough being the little guy in negotiations with a big pub company as they hold all the cards, but myself and R are not in this business to be ridden rough shod over.

The Pubco seem a bit miffed at how thorough and fastidious our lawyer is being with regard to the lease and the missives, but he is only doing his job and looking out for us, his clients. Again, myself and R feel that its worthwhile at this point in time to make the effort to get all the legal stuff concluded to our satisfaction as we feel this will ultimately save an awful lot of time, effort and money in the long run should something pop up at a later date but it all takes something we seem to be running out of – Time.

I am sure we will be able to agree on all the points that are still outstanding, but the pressure is on to get things concluded. The Pubco are stating that the contractors will have to walk away from the job which will add to further delay if we do not get everything agreed within the next hour or so.

It really is like being between a rock and a hard place. If we want to get the pub up and running before we shell out even more money concessions will have to be made, but what it really boil down to is who blinks first.

I can tell you for a fact that this guys not for blinking.

Technorati Tags: pub, publogger, drink, missives, frantic, bar

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Over the past week our lawyers have been in touch with the Pubco’s lawyers to get things advanced and get the missives signed. As soon as the missives are complete the schedule of works regarding the refurbishment can begin in earnest.

 We have been informed by the Pubco that should the missives be signed today or tomorrow then it will be a minimum of two weeks before the contractors would start work. I must admit upon being told that we were more than a little disappointed as were under the illusion that the contractors were ready to move in the minute the missives were concluded.

Technorati Tags: pub, bar, publogger, missives, refurbishment, drink, pubco

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Last week I received a phone call from the police. In order that the license can be transferred I have to convince the police that I am a fit and proper person to hold it. With that in mind I headed down to force headquarters for an interview.

Although the meeting had an informal air, I knew that the matter of the police deciding whether or not I am a fit and proper person to hold a license was a serious matter.

The interview was conducted by a police constable from the licensing division and she started off by asking my employment history since leaving school.

Being lucky enough to have continuous employment since then I was able to provide her with dates, names, addresses and duties and responsibilities of the posts I had been employed in.

Whilst answering all her questions the officer took copious notes and quizzed me on areas of my personal and life skills, the reasons that I wanted to hold this particular license, I was also asked about my knowledge of the particular area of town the pub is in and its trading history.

I answered everything as best as I could. The groundwork that R and myself had carried out during the preparation of our business plan came in particularly useful as we had scouted the competition in the area and spent a considerable amount of time familiarising ourselves with the locality at different times of the day and night.

Next I was asked to produce documentary evidence of my identity and evidence of funding for the purchase of the lease.

Again I was prepared and had with me my passport, proof of address, and the letter from the bank, which although frayed a bit at the edges from the amount of times it has had to be shown to various people, still stated that they were advancing the funds to purchase the lease.

We discussed the responsibilities of a license holder and the implications of the new licensing laws coming into force next year. I had done a bit of reading up on the new changes and found out that its all not quite set in stone yet with a few changes still to be discussed by the politicians.

I was informed that the police themselves have still to formalise their policy on policing the new regulations and that a series of lectures for officers on how to enforce the new laws will be taking place in the very near future.

I was asked if I had any questions so took the opportunity to clear up a few points that had not been able to get cleared up.

I enquired about customers drinking in an area to the front of the pub that is enclosed by railings as there had been a few cases of the council getting upset with drinkers standing outside pubs consuming their drinks.

I was glad to be assured that a problem only arose if customers were standing on the pavement drinking and not if they were on pub property.

I also asked about the bylaws regarding door security staff as the information from the council was a bit patchy. Again this point was cleared up in a couple of minutes and I was a lot happier with the information provided.

After about an hour the interview was concluded and I was free to head off. As I exited the building and headed off for a pint I breathed a rather large sigh of relief.

I had managed to convince myself that I was indeed a fit and proper person to hold a pub license but whether or not I managed to convince the police may be quite another matter.

The lease on the pub can only be signed when the license is transferred, in order that the license can be transferred we needed to qualify as a licensee and convince the police that we were both fit and proper people.

There are a number of courses available so we consulted the Pubco rep and also the licensing company that is handling the transfer of the license.

We eventually settled on the ServeWise course offered through Alcohol Focus Scotland. ServeWise is the largest training provider of its kind in Scotland and courses are well respected within the licensed trade. They are accepted by all licensing boards in Scotland with training requirements and are recommended by the Scottish Licensed Trade Association, BEDA, the Scottish Beer and Pub Association and Scottish Grocer’s Federation.

The course took the best part of a day, was delivered by Steve Wadlick of Belendon Hospitality and covered the following areas

* Licensing Law, Alcohol and People Skills
* The legal responsibilities
* The social responsibilities
* Laws surrounding children
* Sensible promotion of drinks and drinking behaviour
* Best practice and standard setting
* Refusals of service
* Prevention of conflict
* Customer care

Steve was an excellent tutor with an amazing track record within hospitality services and we would both highly recommend him. He had the ability to make us feel at ease whilst explaining the serious business regarding the law, our responsibilities as a licensee etc and gave us the confidence to sit the exam without too many fears.

We received our results a few days later and it was good news, we passed. Its one step closer to gaining approval from the licensing committee and we are sure the exam has provided us with enough information to convince the police that we are fit and proper people.

We have pretty much got things sewn up at our end with regards to the lease. Myself and R have both successfully passed the qualification which allows us to hold a license for pub on sales, all our finances are in place, we have talked to the design team about the refurbishment of the pub and we have insurance ready to roll for the day that we are ready to trade. A survey has been carried out, suppliers of bar and catering equipment have been identified and we have opened a business account in the name of the pub. We are ready to purchase our EPOS system, worked out what our beer and food offer will consist of and have drafted some staff policies. However, there still seems to be no sight of the lease.

We have been in consultation with our lawyer over the past few weeks (it seems like months) and there are apparently still a few I’s to be dotted and t’s to be crossed. It has got to be done to ensure that down the line we don’t get ourselves into trouble with the Pubco but it seems to be taking forever.

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We are a couple of weeks past what we expected to be our entry date and it looks as though it may yet be a few more weeks before we will be able to consider opening.

Every day seems to turn into seven and as time stretches interest has to be paid on our loans and other expenses are mounting. There’s nothing to do but sit tight, grit our teeth and hope that everything turns out ok.

What is becoming apparent through continued research into EPOS systems is that although much of the EPOS hardware is much the same, it’s the software that has the capability to make a good system a great one.

With that in mind I contacted a company that specialises in software solutions for advice.

I had met one of their guys a few months back at a event that took place in their offices. It was an evening devoted to like-minded people with an interest in using the internet to promote their businesses.

I had taken one of their cards and added them to my facebook contacts and exchanged virtual banter so when I got round to giving them a call it was like contacting an old friend even though we had only met once before.

After a face to face meeting the guys were keen to help as they were trying to get a foothold in the EPOS bar and pub market. I told them in all fairness that with our current finances our purchase would more than likely be price led.

I left it with them and they said they would get back in a couple of days and see what they could do. Although I was hoping that we would like to do business with them I had it in the back of my mind that the price they would come back with would be out of our range.

A couple of days later I received an email from them asking me to call as they had put together an EPOS package for us. I gave them a quick call again expecting the call to be a short one with me hanging up the phone when they told me the price. We exchanged pleasantries and they explained what they were offering, two brand new EPOS terminals with their own Microsoft embedded software including till drawers and receipt printers. I asked the obvious question and the response surprised me. As they were trying to break into the market, and because they new that we weren’t major “players” trying to coax them out of a few quid in the way of discount they were able to offer a very good price. I put the phone down had a quick conflab with my business partner and we decided to go for it.

When people come through for you, especially when you are just starting out and are being blinded by this that and the other its great that there are some companies out there who can give the small independent a break. When we eventually sign our lease and are able to go public, we hope to identify the individuals and companies that have come up with the goods. There are plenty out there that haven’t but we are in the business of being positive and not naming and shaming the negative. They know who they are and that’s good enough for me.

In the end it only took a couple of hours and a few phone calls to secure the money for the pub from another high street bank. This means we are back on track and able to move things further on.

We had, over the past few weeks, put together a list of suppliers and people we needed to speak to regarding everything from tables and chairs to napkins and cutlery. The names and numbers came from the Pubco rep, friends of friends who knew people in the trade, the internet and the yellow pages. It was a matter of starting at the top and working our way down.

One of our priorities was an EPOS system. Whilst searching for suppliers what amazed me was the number of companies specialising in this area. In the end I picked a local company and set up a meeting where I would be shown their system, how it worked and all its functions and limitations.

The demo went very well. Not knowing anything about EPOS I was guided through all the technology and given a comprehensive explanation of the functions and capabilities of the system. It was explained that EPOS is more than a simple cash register and I was shown how the system could automatically produce different reports that could analyse the many facets of our pubs operation, cut down on fraud and make the business more efficient. I liked it.

I asked about a price, explaining that we were going to be a small operator, new to the business and could really do with a bit of a break on the price. Unfortunately the figures quoted, even with a bit of a discount, turned out to be a bit rich for our budget. I was honest with the EPOS guy about this fact, telling him that it would be the upper end of our budget, but promised to discuss it with R.

After discussing the matter thoroughly we decided that although the system was ideal and exactly what we were looking for, we couldn’t really afford it.

Having our eyes opened to the expense of a brand new system it became obvious that we would have to seek a cheaper alternative, either a more conventional cash register or a second hand system.

Ebay here we come…

The bank that we approached for finance eventually got back to us the other day and told us that they wouldn’t be willing to advance us the money. So where does that leave us?

Everything that we are doing at the moment includes a steep learning curve. What we have learnt from dealing with the bank is that (a) we shouldn’t have been dependent on the timescale that the bank promised; (b) we shouldn’t have put all our eggs in one basket.

We were fairly certain that the bank would give us the money. After all we are currently both in well-paid, regular, employment and will continue to work after the pub is opened. Our properties have a lot of equity and neither of us, as far as we know, have any adverse credit history.

I guess business is business and they are entitled to pick and choose whom they lend their money to. The only gripe we have is that the bank informed us that it would only take a couple of days to get back to us, when in reality it was more like two week.

It’s hampered our plans and set us back at least two weeks when we can least afford it. We are pretty sure we will secure funding from another source; it’s just a matter of time. At this stage of the game time is our most precious commodity.

After an early conclusion to our last meeting the pubco got in touch a few days later to ask if we intended to continue pursuing the lease on the pub.

As far as we were concerned the only stumbling block so far in advancing with our application was the level of rent asked by the pubco. The pub has been closed for a few months and we felt that, to give us a fighting chance, the rent should be set at a figure that should reflect its recent eclectic trading history.

If we take on the pub, our priorities will be to get the place open so that we can begin recouping our initial layout and start building the business. It will take time to do and a large rent hanging around our necks will only make a difficult process even harder.

We scheduled another meeting with the pubco to see if there was any way we could come to an agreement. We both felt that to have made it this far it would make sense to see if we could salvage something through negotiation on the rent figure.

The meeting went on quite a while, we repeatedly put our reasons for wanting a good deal on the rent and the pubco kept giving us reasons why we should pay what they wanted. It took a while but we eventually came to an agreement that saw the rent start off low – although not as low as we had wished or were led to believe – then would be stepped up over a period of time. It seemed to us a fair compromise, and probably the best that we could have hoped for in the circumstances.

After settling our differences about the rent, we then sat down to exchange the necessary details entitling us to enter us into a formal (but not yet legally binding agreement) to formally express an interest in the lease. What that means is that at present we are the only ones who can be offered the lease and that our lawyers and the pubco’s lawyers can contact each other to start on the legal paperwork necessary to take things further.

All we have to do now is await the bank’s decision on our funding!

Technorati Tags: publog, publogger, pubco

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Our meeting with the pubco representative on Monday evening was to simply fill out some forms and look around the property. Or so we thought.

We met with the area pubco’s estates manager and representative and spent quite a considerable amount of time touring the pub and cellar to get some indication of how much work would need to be done to get the pub up and running.

As time went on we were repeatedly asked how we would like things to look, where did we intend putting this, that, and the next thing and what kind of equipment we would be using in the food preparation area. As this was only our second visit to the premises and there hadn’t been any indication, up to that point, of any kind of formal offer from either the pubco or ourselves we were slightly surprised that we were being asked for such detailed information.

The rep explained that the pubco was ready to enter into a formal agreement to let us express our interest in the lease. The agreement being offered to us would let lawyers from both parties contact each other to start the legal process.

A checklist was produced and we found that we had enough information to get the majority of the boxes ticked. One sticking point was the rent. Before we signed anything, even a non-legally binding agreement, we needed a figure. At no point in our numerous meetings and correspondence with the pubco were we ever given a definitive amount even though we mentioned at every opportunity.

The pubco had told us many things, that the rent would be low to start with as the pub was currently closed, that good retailers would not be penalised by the pubco for doing well, we were even told at one point that the rent would be “peppercorn”.

You could have knocked us over with a feather when the rent was revealed to us. It was not what we had reckoned and certainly not what we had budgeted for when preparing our business plan. It was at that point I said that if there was no scope for negotiation then I would not be showing any interest and was happy to walk away.

Our meeting concluded very shortly after that.

Technorati Tags: publog, publogger, confusion, pubco, rent

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“A bank is a place that will lend you money if you can prove that you don’t need it” – Bob Hope.

We headed to see the business manager of the local high street bank hoping to gain finance for the pub lease. The weather was terrible, we were both soaked to the skin and R was not in the best of moods after spending the morning battling with the post office about the size of the parcels he sends out from his business. It seemed an inauspicious start to a very important meeting.

As when visiting the lawyers we had to provide photo ID and proof of residence to comply with money laundering legislation before getting down to business. The business manager had been in possession of our business plan for a couple of days so we started off discussing its contents. It turned out that he was familiar with the pub as he had conducted the affairs of the previous leasee. Several tough questions popped up, but as we had spent the past few weeks analysing all our facts and figures we felt that we handled them adequately. Well, by that, I mean he didn’t burst out.laughing at any point.

Eventually all aspects of the business were covered and after taking time to fill in some of the necessary paperwork it was all over. We were then assured that the bank would email us to request some additional information and subsequently inform us whether or not our application had been successful. We haven’t heard anything yet which doesn’t surprise us as the majority of organisations we have dealt with during the whole process seem never to be able to stick to an agreed timetable.

Oh well, I suppose its a matter of waiting. Its not something that comes naturally to R or myself but a factor which we are increasingly having to find ways to cope with.

Technorati Tags: publog, publogger, bank, money

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 n the old days it’s said a person’s word was their bond and many a deal would be concluded with a slap on the back, a drink and a hearty handshake.

In those times, legal input would have been minimal.

Nowadays, in an ever growing litigious society, carrying out business like that would soon lose you the shirt off your back, especially in the licensed trade, so we decided that the sooner that we sought legal advice on starting a pub the better.

I personally find dealing with lawyers a bit daunting. Like distant relatives it’s normally only in times of extreme happiness, sadness or crisis that contact with them occurs and I hadn’t really a clue where to start to find the correct person for the job. I remembered that a few weeks earlier I had been in communication with a senior member of one of the large high street banks and he had recommended a large firm of lawyers nearby that had staff who specialised in pubco leases.

A meeting was set up and the lawyer went over how pubcos work and told us the ins and outs of leases etc. The message came over loud and clear that Pubco’s don’t do anyone any favours as the leases are heavily weighted in their favour and there is normally very little in the way of negotiation over the terms of the lease. Even though we had done a lot of research into the subject and had read all about how pubcos treat their leasees it was quite galling to hear it from someone who’s job it was to conduct legal proceedings with these very large and powerful companies.

Having informed us of the peculiarities and hazards of owning a lease the lawyer went on to state that there is no reason a well-run establishment, with the right personnel and a lot of hard work shouldn’t be able to make a bit of money.

It was at that point he brought up the subject of his fee. It wasn’t cheap, which only reminds me the next meeting is with the bank manager…

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Whilst we are still waiting to hear about our application for the pub we thought we had better start on some of the legal stuff.

Yesterday we arranged a meeting with two lawyers, one who specialised in business partnerships and the other was an expert in pub leases.

We were informed that creating the business partnership would be quite straightforward as we intend it to be a 50/50 split right down the middle. Negotiating the lease, on the other hand, could be quite tricky.

Our lawyer has conducted business with the brewery and gave us many helpful insights into the business of pub contracts. For example we knew it was set up to benefit them rather than us but were surprised to find out that there is usually virtually no negotiation on their behalf and it will be us that will be expected to yield to their demands rather than the other way round.

Of course the lawyers expertise doesn’t come cheap. The business partnership will cost around £500 and the lease around about £2500. Which reminds me that tomorrow we have an appointment with the bank manager.

Technorati Tags: lawyers, lease, publog, publogger, bank, legal

We are still waiting a response from the brewery regarding our business plan.

In the meantime we have taken steps to arrange a formal business agreement between us. Should anything happen then it will be helpful to have a legally binding contract that can be consulted.

We envisage it will detail our individual responsibilities for debt and any loan repayments and also what happens in the event that one of us should die or become incapacitated.

An appointment has been arranged for next week with a firm of respected lawyers and hopefully it should only be a short time later that we can get something signed and chalked off our list of things to do.

Work continues on the final version of our business plan.

We have had a lot of positive feed back from various people that we have shown it to including friends and family,  accountants, surveyors, business managers and other various interested parties.

Most have commented on depth of demographical and geographical information we have managed to garner about the area. Other have commented that we seem to have a good grasp of how much will be involved to get the place up and running.

We have also had a lot of pointers with regard to the financial information, for example an accountant friend mentioned that we should use comma’s to separate the thousands from the hundreds. A basic thing if you are involved in the finance industry but at the time we were writing it up it never struck us as being a big deal.

Currently we are working to rectify the typo’s and update some of the financial information that we should have included.

We have another meeting with the Brewery very shortly and will be going over our figures with them to see if it all makes sense.

Until then its just a matter of waiting, constantly adjusting the material that feedback has identified, and working out what we will do next should our final application be accepted.

Technorati Tags: publog, publogger, business plan

When we submitted our draft business plan the brewery rep said that it would be a wee while until we heard from them again as things were busy over the next week or so and it would take them time to mull over what we had written etc.

I received a call on Friday about the business plan and my first thoughts were that we had in some way stuffed up and that we would have to start again from the beginning or something.

You could have knocked me down with a feather when I was told that in their opinion it was very good indeed, so much so that we now have another meeting arranged for Wednesday to further go over some of our figures. This hopefully keep the momentum up and move us slightly closer to our goal of having the pub open as soon as we can manage it.

Last night we met with a representative of the brewery to discuss our draft business plan.

We had spent a lot of time and put a lot of effort into getting it just right. We were relieved when we were told that the first impression was that it looked quite good.

Not having prepared a business plan for a pub before we were worried that we may have gone off on the completely wrong tack.

We were asked where we got our extensive demographic profile and the rest of our facts and figures. We felt that at this stage it wouldn’t be appropriate to reveal our exact sources but let us just say that it took quite a while to compile and a lot of time searching the internet and an equally long time pouring over computer screens and printouts trying to sift out the relevant information.

Anyway the upshot of it all is that we will have to have a few more meetings to explain all our financial figures and how we came to our conclusions about just how much trade the pub could potentially do.

A lot of hard work has already been done and I am sure that there will be more ahead. Its not something we are afraid of.

Our attitude after last nights meeting was one of upbeat optimism. Long may it continue.

Technorati Tags: meeting, pub, publogger, publog, demographics