Heineken has said it will create around 1,000 new jobs around the UK as part of a £40 million boost to its pubs business.
The project will focus on revamping around a quarter of the 2,400 alehouses run by Star Pubs, the UK subsidiary of the Dutch brewing giant.
Around 62 of its pubs which had been marked for long-term closure were reopened last year as the project got underway.
Works have to reopen another 10 have either started or been completed so far this year.
It comes after a rough few years for the hospitality industry as it struggled to bounce back from Covid-19 and a long period of high inflation.
Since the start of 2020, more than 2,000 pubs have been closed around the country.
There are now less than 39,000 left across England and Wales, roughly one for every 950 adults.
Bosses said Star Pubs ‘is on track to have the lowest number of closed pubs since 2019’.
More than 600 pubs – a quarter of the chain’s 2,400 establishments – will get a makeover to their interior, toilets and gardens.
Lawson Mountstevens, Star Pubs’ managing director, said: ‘Consistent investment – rather than a stop, start approach – and a strategy of creating great locals have been key to helping our pubs weather the storms of the last few years.
‘Heineken sees firsthand the value in great British pubs and their ongoing popularity.
‘It recognises that Brits love their locals and that well-invested pubs trade better.
‘This £40 million inward investment from a Dutch business into UK pubs is a resounding vote of confidence in the future of the sector.
‘Even with pressures on disposable income, people are still prioritising a trip to their local, valuing it as an everyday treat and as a way of connecting with their community.’
Mr Mountstevens said pubs have been hurt by a ‘disproportionate tax burden’, calling on Keir Starmer’s government to address this in its next review of rates.
Six months after closure, The Cherry Tree, a pub in Witham, Essex dating to the early 1900s, re-launched as a ‘family-friendly community village pub’ after a £180,000 upgrade.
In Aveley, Essex, The Crown & Anchor was closed for a year before a £244,000 transformation into a sports and entertainment bar.
A third, The Wildmoor Oak gastro pub near Bromsgrove in Worcestershire, just south of Birmingham, was revived from 18 months of closure after a £513,000 revamp.
Mountstevens said: ‘Pubs have proved their enduring appeal; after all the disruption of recent years, Star is on track to have the lowest number of closed pubs since 2019.
‘It’s a tribute to the drive and entrepreneurship of licensees and the importance of continued investment.
‘We’ve spent more than £200m upgrading and maintaining our pubs over the last five years, and we’ll continue to invest to keep them open and thriving.
‘Time and again we see the value consumers place on having a good local and how important it is to communities.
‘Well-invested pubs run by great licensees are here to stay, but like all locals, they need government support to reduce the enormous tax burden they shoulder.’
A similar version of this article was first published on May 6, 2024.
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