After VAT, wages, rent, rates, utilities and other costs, the business is left with just 38 pence. That profit is kept back “because there’s always a need for a rainy day fund, and recently there have been many. I haven’t paid myself out of this pub since it opened. A £7 pint isn’t expensive, it’s simply breaking even for city pubs in 2024.”
The (relatively) good news is that with inflation coming down, price rises will become more steady, according to Phil Urban, CEO of Mitchells and Butlers, which manages over 1,700 pubs around the country. The “hike in prices that we have seen over the last two or three years with high inflation is slowing down, so in our latest round of menus we only took 1.8 per cent price [rises],” said Urban. “I think what we’ll see going forward is a return to more normal levels of price increases of between 2.5 and 5 per cent.”
For the BBPA, the £10 pint threshold is a long way off. “The average UK pint costs £4.80, so we do not envisage the average reaching £10 anytime soon,” said McClarkin. “No doubt you will be able to point to some examples of some pints in high-end pubs, bars or hotels where that price may be being charged, but it is certainly not typical.”
McClarkin says: “The next government needs to look at a fairer tax and regulatory framewor that will mean that the beer and pub sector can thrive and ensure the price of a pint can remain affordable in all parts of the UK.” One thing’s certain, however: prices won’t be going down.