04/03/2009 - Pub in bring your own booze night
Customers at a Northamptonshire pub have been invited to bring their own booze as part of the landlord's bid to shield his business from the economic downturn.
A record number of pubs are closing every week in Britain and publican Bip Wetherell is hoping that his Saturday night initiative will ensure his is not one of them. Figures from the British Beer and Pub Association showed that a total of 39 pubs are shutting every week, three more than last year.
Mr Wetherell, who runs The Venue in Corby, said he is losing trade due to a combination of supermarkets selling cut-price alcohol and the difficult economic climate.
Clients pay a £5 entry fee to the pub to cover the costs of security and the DJ, but once inside they can drink their own alcohol. The event has proved a huge success with the local community and people were queuing up outside with their supermarket bags of drink, Mr Wetherell said.
He added that he had introduced the initiative to ensure that his pub was not one of the five pubs closing their doors to customers every day in Britain.
Copyright © Press Association 2009
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