As part of Punch Taverns’ continued commitment to work closely with their Partners, a selection of licensees from Punch pubs were invited to take part in a Partner Forum on cask ale.
The forum took place at the Punch Taverns’ Old Swan in Dudley, one of the four original brewery houses.
Licensees attended from pubs across the West Midlands to discuss cask ale in their business and the support they receive from Punch Taverns.
Tony Madden, who has been running pubs since 1985 and currently operates the British Oak in Stirchley, Birmingham, found the forum very beneficial: “I’ve been at the British Oak for nine years and cask ale is one of the biggest draws, so it is a very important aspect of my business. The Forum was extremely useful and engaging as I could get tips from fellow licensees and it was a great opportunity to talk directly to Punch staff about real issues.
“It is an extremely positive initiative and I really felt like my issues were addressed. They are really on the ball with national and regional brands and I feel more confident about Punch as a buying agent for traditional beers.”
Stephen Martin, Drinks Category Manager for Punch Taverns, said: “Cask Ale is one of the unique selling points for British pubs and as it’s continuing to grow its category share of total beer, we feel that it is one of the most significant business drivers for pubs.
“At Punch, we offer a range of casks through SIBA as well as our Finest Cask range. This forum allowed us to share our plans as well as gaining insight for future development.
“As result of the feedback, we are looking to review our POS support included in the Punch Finest Cask packs and improve communication of our available cask brands.”
Punch also receives feedback from Partners through the Partner blog and Partner survey on the Punch Buying Club website, the HIM survey and the Contact Centre.
Andy Slee, Central Operations Director said: “We found the forum very useful, helping us look more closely at the needs of our partners and to develop a number of initiatives. Feedback from the partners who attended was very positive and has encouraged us to plan more events, broadening it out to discuss website development, wine and food.
“The forums are just one of our many initiatives to help us build strong working relationships with our partners and to maximise the value we add to their businesses,” he continued.