The Decline of the Pub

If you’re a bit older, you reflect more on big (but slow) changes that have taken place in your lifetime. One huge transformation is the British High Street – a topic under much discussion during the current recession. Yes, small independent retailers have been hurt and much is said about the decline of the Post Office. But one huge change is the steep decline of the local pub. Sounds like a good opportunity to use SWOT and PEST analysis to try and understand some of the reasons behind this trend.

Before reading any further, this could be a good chance for you to brainstorm some of the many reasons behind this long term trend. You might get a few ideas from this terrific picture gallery of closed pubs. Do you recognise any?!

This article Last Orders: Calling Time on Pubs is full of other ideas that help to explain the problem.

If you haven’t got time to read it, some of the main factors it identifies are:

Recession, falling consumer spending.
Rising utility prices (heating and lighting).
The improving home environment in the UK, with more entertainment possibilities there.
Low supermarket alcohol prices.
The smoking ban.
Tougher drink drive enforcement.
Falling beer sales in general.
Rising costs for brewers.
The changing nature of the relationship between brewers and pubs – before 1989 most pubs were owned by breweries.
High rents for landlords.
Changing social trends: the rise of bars and more young women drinking out.

It seems certain that Britain will lose many more of its pubs, but the decline of any individual pub isn’t a certainty. What strategies might a pub employ to try to secure its future?