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JD WETHERSPOON WILL sell their three pubs, in Cork, Waterford and Carlow and a site in Galway city centre with an asking price of €10m.
The four sites are The Linen Weaver in Cork City, An Geata Arundel in Waterford City, The Tullow Gate in Carlow and the former Carbon nightclub in Galway, which has now been granted permission to become a licensed premises and restaurant.
It is not clear what will change for the staff of the premises, but company spokesman Eddie Gershon said the pubs were being sold as “going concerns” and he “hopes that there will be continuing employment opportunities in the same pubs”.
Going concern means the pubs have the resources to continue operating for the foreseeable future.
If any staff were to lose their jobs, Gershon said the company was “happy to offer employment in our remaining pubs to anyone working in the pubs that are being sold”.
He blamed the pandemic for the sale, saying it had a big impact on the hospitality industry, and Wetherspoons wasn’t immune.
“We’ve decided, in Ireland, to concentrate on Dublin and Belfast and intend to review the situation in a year or two, when profits are back to pre-pandemic levels,” he said.
JD Wetherspoon operates nine pubs in the Republic of Ireland and three in Northern Ireland and are known for their low-priced pints and pub grub.
The UK-based pub giant was, as recently as 2019, planning to expand with a £200 million investment across the UK and Ireland.
To sell the properties, the company has engaged the services of Savills and CBRE, which valued the portfolio in excess of €10m.
Savills said each of the pubs has “undergone extensive refurbishment and present in turnkey condition,” while the Galway site would appeal to developers, considering its city centre location.
The properties are being sold by private treaty as one lot or separate lots.
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Wetherspoons is owned by arch brexiteer Tim Martin, the business has declined massively since Brexit as he can’t get cheaper foreign labor who all left after Brexit.
The Wetherspoons business model was practical in 80’s, 90’s and early 00’s. People want more from pubs these days other than bad drink and even worse food.
Karma has caught up with Dim Tim.
@Patrick O’Farrell: I would agree with you in some respects Patrick, but the model they use works particularly well in the UK. I’m based in the North East of England, Wetherspoons pubs in rural towns in particular do an absolute roaring trade. I watched the rugby on Sunday night in one, had 6 pints of coors and a chicken katsu curry, and I was left with a few coins out of £30. The staff are friendly, toilet’s clean but, they are very much a drinkers pub. I certainly wouldn’t offer to bring someone there on a first date! I read somewhere recently in a trade magazine that the profits in the Uk are now surpassing pre-Covid levels. Interestingly enough, it was also mentioned that they were struggling to find a footing in the Irish market. I’m sure that info is available somewhere online.
@Ayo: Did U not give the last of you’re few coins to staff,as they’re paid buttons & you seem to be happy with the service
@Ayo: thought made a big point of not having TVs
@: I did indeed, more than the few coins tbh, I’m in the hospitality trade myself so I’m aware at how difficult it is.
@donal O’brien: I thought the same until earlier this year when the local Wetherspoons advertised that they were showing 6 nations. When I enquired about it, they said they will turn on the tv for matches that are available on free to air, so that the company don’t need to pay a fee. ITV had the contract for RWC, and it’s available free to air. Interestingly enough, they don’t play background music in their pubs for the same reason. Laws are similar to those at home. If pubs or restaurants, or indeed clothes shops etc play music, they have to pay IMRO an annual fee. Not sure exactly what the case is here.
@Ayo: because here in Ireland they are up against decent pubs that sell good pints of Guinness
And massively overpriced Irish pubs are any better?? Yeah the ambience might be better in Irish bars, but charging 20 quid for a burger and 7 quid for a pint does not give you the right to look down your nose at Wetherspoon pubs.
The Dregs of society is all that drinks in them places
@John O brien: you don’t have to go to Wetherspoons to find them people.
@Michael Howe: them peoples here init
@John O brien: Would love you to share your experience of the people you have met in these pubs. I regularly go to The Forty Foot in Dun Laoghaire and don’t consider myself or any other customer to be a dreg (whatever that is)
Good riddance.
The Great Brexitre the owner of JD WETHERSPOON is finding it difficult to expand this empire in Europe…I wonder why the rules of employment are somewhat different from what they are in Britain
If they can’t make a big enough profit with these places then who can?
The one in Waterford 3 euro a Stella lovely drop too fresh won’t be seeing that price again.
Great pubs, but not pubs for snobs, let the snobs pay for their €7 pints in fancy, sterile pubs
@Mary Toilet:
Tacky chavy kips….enjoy! ;~}
I will, thanks
@Mary Toilet: Get out & get a job & stop spending all day on the journal,then you might afford a 7 euro pint (:
Pot, kettle
@Mary Toilet: justifiably upmarket pubs, clubs and restaurants will charge more for their produce than the yellow pack ones. People will make their choices but there’s no need to be judgmental about it.
all food is frozen …really awful…
Low prices haha don’t make me laugh
Drink drink more drink cheap drinks. …..last outpost for cheap pints
As much as we love to drink we don’t as much as we use to and I don’t mean binge drinking. The ratio of population wanting to eat and drink out won’t make pubs / restaurants in these locations any real profits.
In the UK he is closing a lot of his old style boozers , usually in low foot fall areas but opening his new type ones in high foot fall areas.
The problem today is costs are to high. Even tho profit could be had to suit a single independent owner the buying or rent added with running costs make it un sustainable and for the big players there not enough meat.
@J M: One large cost that businesses have here is insurance. There is such an easy solution to this, and for some reason that I cannot understand, the Government (and many previous ones) refuse to act on it. Why can’t they slash the payouts for compensation? Of course they will say that they have done something about this, but it is completely inadequate. Only because it is so serious, I would otherwise laugh at listening to criminals arguing that they got their money initially from a compensation payout.
All these ridiculously high payouts are not paid by the insurance companies, it’s by me and you, and businesses paying higher premiums. The Government is actively encouraging people to create bogus claims, by allowing crazy payouts.
Yes, indeed, I do agree with Joe
Kinahans might buy them. Definitely be a white Xmas there then.
If any one has been to the UK for a long period, they will have noticed that there is a lot of poverty and people just getting by. There is no 220€ a week and a generous welfare system over there, so wetherspoons suits a lot of clients budget. The Irish nearly want red carpets these days so it’s not as popular. More of an Irish mindset problem for wetherspoons sales,especially in rural towns like Carlow, population is not large enough
have your say