Some good might yet come from the Crooked House saga, as support grows for a Heritage Pubs Bill to protect historic hostelries. As for the wonky Black Country pub itself, illicitly demolished last August, I’m more pessimistic.

 

The perpetrators of this act of vandalism have been ordered by South Staffordshire Council to rebuild it “so as to recreate it as similar as possible to the demolished building” – crooked and complete with the buttresses that have stopped it falling over since the 19th century.

 

Predictably, those responsible have appealed this onerous, if appropriate, order and suggested they rebuild instead on a different site, which is hardly in the spirit. 

 

The saga, at any rate, is set to go on for a long time yet, and hopefully Laura Hadland, the Campaign for Real Ale’s campaigner of the year, will have the patience to continue to meticulously record its progress on her website. I’m not going to repeat her excellent work here but just muse a little on what it all means.

 

The scale of the furore surrounding the thing is, when you think about it, surprising. The British Beer & Pub Association reckons the Crooked House was one of 500 pubs to close in 2023. It stood out only because it stood at an angle. And looked at in cold hard engineering terms, that means its demise should not have been a surprise (although I should point out that I am not, myself, a cold hard engineer).

 

Maintaining something at a tilt isn’t easy. The Leaning Tower of Pisa is constantly monitored by scientists and its centre of gravity kept within the perimeter of its base by a complex system of weights and pulleys. Chesterfield’s twisted spire church received nearly £300,000 from the government’s Culture Recovery Fund in 2020.

 

The Crooked House had to survive on a trade, and it struggled to recover post-covid. The writing was already on the wonky wall. Pubco Marston’s put it on the market in March 2023 before a break-in in June caused £10,000 worth of damage and it was forced to close. A month later, the pubco announced the completion of a sale “for alternative use” and local headlines were confident it would never open as a pub again. 

 

Only then were there moves to give it listed building status, but it was too late. A week later, it was rubble. Hadland argues that “whether or not the business was viable” is not the point. “Whether or not it continued operating as a pub, those characterful bricks were special,” she added.

 

No doubt. But the Crooked House quickly came to represent all pubs that have been lost, or that we might lose. Once gone, its significance was more than “characterful bricks”. It became the archetypal pub, a powerful symbol of an industry under threat. And if the suggested new law happens, it will not have died in vain.

 

Many other pubs could have done that job, perhaps, but not without ticking those extra boxes that meant the Crooked House chimed with the imaginary pub that people carry in their heads, the ideal English pub with all its awkward quirky excess. In that sense, every pub needs to be a little bit wonky. But in the real, commercial world, wonkiness comes second to making a profit. That’s the riddle the Crooked House had to solve.

 

Tourism was one tempting answer. Looking at the last TripAdvisor reports on the pub, in May 2023, it’s clear that it retained its charm for visitors from all over the world, and especially the United States. Is this enough? Or perhaps, is this too much? At what point does a pub cease to be a pub and become a tourist attraction? When all the regulars are driven out? 

 

There’s a pub in Dingle in the Irish Republic called Dick Mack’s. I came across it 40-odd years ago and I thought it was the best place ever. On the counter to the right, Guinness poured. On the counter to the left, a cobbler repaired shoes while you sipped. Once, I was in there and the publican-cobbler decided to have an early night. He dropped the keys on the bar and told us to lock up when we’d finished. Another time, I was forced to sing. I’d rather not talk about that.

 

The last time I visited it had turned into a museum exhibit-cum-gift store. It’s still serving pints, but the cobblers now sells expensive leather goods, exclusive scotch whiskies and branded merchandise (also available online). I believe it’s doing very well. But is it a pub? If they do rebuild the Crooked House, it had better as be a proper local pub. If it turns into a fairground attraction, then I’d rather they not bother.

As the year progresses, some of the major factors that I’ve seen placing increased pressure on day-to-day convenience and food-to-go spend in quick service restaurants (QSRs) have been consumers’ changing weekly spending patterns and ever-squeezed wallets. 

 

Some of the questions I’ve found myself asking in light of these evolving transactional trends are: what differences are emerging between demographic groups, geographies and price-points as these trends continue to unfold? More importantly, how will these trends impact operators’ future openings strategies and overall performance?

 

According to CACI’s centre dynamics dataset, most retail centres in all asset classes have grown their share of food and beverage (F&B) outlets. Most notably, there has been an increase in more than 90% of centres in the top four classes – city centres, regional malls, major town centres and satellite centres – between 2019 and 2023. We have also seen the increasing prominence of F&B in shopping and retail parks, while further down the retail hierarchy, we’ve witnessed more of a mixture of increases and decreases.

 

Over the same time period, we’ve seen city centres, regional malls, major towns centres and satellite centres drop in their overall level of consumer attractiveness. So much so that the four largest asset classes have seen declines in more than 90% of their centres. The picture is a bit more mixed as the retail hierarchy descends into towns, transport hubs and leisure parks. Here, an average of 40% of centres in these asset classes exhibit a decline.

The ever-increasing proportion of consumer spend moving online has undoubtedly prompted these downward trends. Given the vast differences in changes at an asset class level, and with many exceptions at a centre level, having access to detailed data on the changing attractiveness and demographics at centre level is vital.

 

While it may seem logical to view post-covid food-to-go demand being highest during the mid-working week (Tuesday to Thursday) with the uptake in hybrid working, this is far from the universal norm. CACI’s local centre mobile app data analysis within our location dynamics suite has shown that while areas in the City of London like Fleet Street/St Paul’s do have a pronounced Tuesday to Thursday peak, places like Barkers Pool in central Sheffield have a pronounced Friday and Saturday night economy. This further contrasts with central Eastbourne, which has maintained a more traditional Monday to Sunday 9am to 4pm custom and a strong weekend daytime custom. 

 

These three examples serve as a reminder that no location is the same or follows identical consumer spending behaviours. As a result, successful operators will be ones that understand the different “missions” their customers are on. This way, they can ensure they meet their customers’ needs and staff their outlets to provide the right level of service at times demanded by their customers.

 

So, what considerations must food-to-go retailers keep in mind to engage with consumers at the right time and in the right place? The competing and complementary F&B offers in local areas; changing consumer behaviours as a reflection of new and embedded worker patterns; centre attractiveness; and overarching market shifts that impact footfall on specific days and times. 

 

With these trends in mind, food-to-go retailers must have a deeply rooted understanding of who their customers are, where they are located and what times of the week they are most likely to interact with your outlets. Understanding your place in terms of its attractiveness to customers and the effect of its location on driving footfall will be equally important.

I read an article in Propel recently on the lack of training in the hospitality sector. Research from the Economics Foundation suggests that spending on training has reduced by 35%, and that this is leading to a reduction in productivity.

 

I often find myself wanting to challenge perspectives on anything related to how our teams operate, but usually, good judgement gets the better of me. In this case, I am not sure whether I want to challenge the article or put more colour on the detail. Either way, I hope it is okay to continue, and that I won’t offend.

 

My first point is that we have had a revolution in the hospitality training environment over the last decade. Fifteen years ago, face-to-face training was the norm, and online training was a minority sport. This made training very expensive, and I suspect it was therefore done very sparingly. Now, online training is how nearly everyone works, particularly for the easier items to train. 

 

It has probably cut the cost of training by more than 35% for the same activity. So, our efficiency and productivity in this regard has improved substantially, and a reduction of 35% in total spend probably means we are doing much more training than we used to.

 

But we need to also consider what is being trained. Compliance courses are a necessity, and it is essential that people are trained to ensure they don’t hurt themselves or break the law. I think we are pretty good at that. I also think the training industry has been pretty good at developing further skills courses, be it wine knowledge or conflict management. I hope here our skills are much better, but I would still argue not good enough.

 

The article makes the attempt to link the lack of training to poor productivity growth, which of course, is of much more interest to me. At S4labour, we are seeing a massive increase in our requests for training. For the most part, perhaps even all, it is focused on productivity increases. I am also pleased to say that in the more complex world of labour management, it is mainly face-to-face and in groups. Face-to-face means you know when you need to dig deeper or explain more because you haven’t gotten your point across, or that you can see in the body language that there is some level of resistance. Training in groups means that the team all learn from each other and develop best practices together.

 

Despite these initial efforts, I think it is fair to say that productivity improvement across the industry has been poor. We haven’t really embraced change in this area, and too many of us are relying on the ways we learned 30 years ago. Best practice is improving quickly and will accelerate further in the next few years.

 

It of course requires us to change what we have always done. It is a sobering fact that at least 25% of our total labour cost is wasted. At a time when every £1,000 counts, this is still a big opportunity for the industry, and I think it is time to set harder targets and help people become even better. Cutting out the waste through great analysis and good techniques, combined with great face-to-face training, will get us a long way!

Across the UK’s hospitality and leisure industry, businesses are trying to do business better. From increased recycling and circular economy initiatives to reductions in food waste, the industry is taking steps to create a greener, waste-free future. 

 

For hotel operators, the challenges are particularly acute given their scale and array of services offered – from on-site gyms and pools to daily laundry – which often come with a large carbon footprint. At a very basic level, even very fundamental tasks like keeping the lights on and public spaces warm for guests and employees can be hugely energy intensive.

 

The constant nature of the resources required for hotels to operate means they generate about 2-5% of the global carbon emissions emitted by the tourism sector. When compared with other property sectors, hotels are in the top ten of the highest polluting and least energy efficient.

 

As consumers increasingly evaluate their carbon footprints, the hotel industry’s slow adoption of greener practices may soon leave some out in the cold. In fact, according to Booking.com, 74% of consumers want travel companies to offer more sustainable travel choices – up from 66% in 2022 – but, only a little over a third are willing to pay more for travel options with sustainable certification, highlighting a challenging environment for operators.

In addition, as businesses try to meet the goals of their own environmental, social and governance (ESG) strategies, greener corporate travel is also high on the agenda. According to Deloitte’s 2023 corporate travel study, just over 40% of European companies are working to optimise their corporate travel policy to decrease their environmental impact.

 

To meet the growing shift towards greener travel among consumers and business travellers alike – and meet the Paris Climate Change obligations – it’s estimated that hotels need to reduce carbon emissions by 66% per room by 2030 and by 90% per room by 2050. That will require a huge shift and, in many cases, a significant investment to monitor and reduce energy usage. Some hotel operators are now adopting renewable energy sources, such as solar and wind power, and at Village Hotel Club, we’ve switched to 100% renewable electricity and gas. But, for many hotels, particularly those that were built more than 20 years ago, the road to decarbonisation isn’t a straightforward one.

 

Like housing stock, we have an ageing hotel stock. According to the World Economic Forum, 80% of the buildings standing in 2050 have already been built. While new-build hotels present an opportunity to integrate new technology, processes and procedures to make a stay less energy-intensive, bringing older hotels up to the standards required today – and even more so, the standards required in decades to come – will require a colossal and collaborative effort.  

 

Achieving an environmental certification such as BREEAM (Building Research Establishment Environmental Assessment Method) – with different versions for new builds versus existing buildings – is one way to recognise hotels that are designed, constructed and operated with a minimal impact on the environment. Such buildings not only conserve resources, but also provide healthier and more comfortable spaces for guests and employees – something that the entire industry should aspire to be.  

 

The good news is that technology is there to help, and it’s becoming more accessible for hotel operators. Now, there is an entire ecosystem of suppliers that can offer low-cost opportunities to monitor and evaluate the energy efficiency of a hotel, minimising the previous cost barrier that may have prevented some from investing.

 

The better news is that operators are already taking steps, which offer a blueprint for other businesses to follow. At Village Hotel Club, for instance, we’ve recently announced the evolution of our Village Green ESG & Sustainability Strategy, to inspire collective action from employees and guests in areas where we can have the most impact, such as decarbonisation and social impact. We’re not doing this because it’s a “nice to have” or to add a premium to our rooms, but because it’s the right thing to do; because it proves our commitment to creating better futures for our employees, guests and local community; and because we want to lead the industry from the front. 

 

Now it’s time for others to follow suit. I recently completed King’s College’s first ESG executive education programme for hospitality leaders, which was well attended by senior decision-makers at other global hotel brands. We were all there to help spearhead the industry’s shift towards greener travel and shared practical advice and knowledge to collectively improve, and continue to stay in touch as we acknowledge that collaboration will accelerate the pace of change.

 

As we aim for net zero, this isn’t about one hotel brand coming out on top. It’s about changing the industry as a whole, lowering the amount we contribute to global emissions and creating real impact. By getting ahead of the curve now, and ensuring that hotels meet the ever-changing needs of consumers seeking greener travel, we can ensure that the UK’s hotel industry continues to remain at the heart of the UK’s hospitality and leisure industry – and economy – for generations to come.