Brewers eat brewers…
By: JimOldfield
July 9th, 2016
Like dog-eat dog, brewers eat brewers… and others eat them two. This week has seen two large businesses in the throes of changing assets across England and the Channel Islands.
In one move, Leeds Brewery has offloaded its entire stock of seven pubs to fellow brewing giant Camerons, for an undisclosed fee.
The 150-year-old Hartlepool brewery moved in to take the pubs in Leeds and York, which employ around 100 people – with Leeds Brewery describing it as “a strategic move”.
Involved are six Leeds pubs: the Lamb & Flag, Midnight Bell, Eagle & Child, White Swan, Brewery Tap and Crowd of Flavours. The seventh is the Duke of York, in York. Leeds ales will continue to feature prominently in the pubs, however.
Leeds Brewery said it wanted to refocus its efforts in its brewing business. It has a current weekly capacity of 150,000 pints, producing, among others, Leeds Best and Yorkshire Gold.
Camerons has a growing estate of pubs. Three years ago it acquired the Head of Steam craft beer chain, which it has since expanded with the latest opening in Newcastle this summer.
The second move involves Channel Islands pub and restaurant chain, the Liberation Group, which is being sold to an investment group for £118 million.
Caledonia Investments has snapped up Liberation, which has breweries in Jersey and Bristol. Only last January, Jersey-based Liberation itself acquired the Bristol-area Butcombe Brewery, to swell its assets to 94 pubs, bars and eateries, two breweries and more than 750 staff.
Caledonia is backing the existing management team, and has pledged to provide an additional £40m of funding for investment.
Butcombe recently added two more pubs to its portfolio, as part of plans to acquire 20 pubs a year over the next five years, and Caledonia Investments said it plans to grow the business through capital expenditure on pubs and pub groups across the South of England.
The deal is subject to the approval of the Channel Islands Competition and Regulatory Authorities.
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