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Marston’s PLC to operate 156 Brains pubs in Wales


Brains is a family business with a portfolio of 156 pubs, principally located in South and West Wales

() said it has exchanged contracts with brewer Brains to operate its portfolio of 156 pubs in Wales, on a combination of leased and management contract arrangements.

Established in Cardiff in 1882, Brains is a family business with a portfolio of 156 pubs, principally located in South and West Wales, as well as the eponymous heritage beer brand of Wales.

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The Brains pub business, which employs around 1,300 people, comprises a freehold estate of 86 managed and 55 tenanted pubs, together with a leasehold estate of 15 managed pubs and bars. 

Marston’s noted that Brains has been under significant financial pressure due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, so it stepped in to protect the heritage brand name and the pub jobs.

The firm added that the agreement is consistent with Marston’s long-term strategy as a focused pub operator, post the recent disposal of its brewing assets, and strengthens its presence in Wales, where it currently has 106 pubs.

Marston’s will operate the 141 freehold Brains pubs on a leasehold basis, with effect from February 2021, with rent chargeable from April 2021. 

The majority of these will be on long lease agreements of 25 years while the outlet level underlying earnings (EBITDA) on a pre-COVID-19 basis is £14mln and annual rent of £5.5mln will be charged from April 2021. 

The 1,300 people currently employed in the pub business will transfer across to Marston’s and an initial incremental central overhead of up to £2mln will be required to operate the additional pubs, so the transaction is expected to be earnings accretive in the first year post-completion.

“This transaction is entirely consistent with Marston’s long-term strategy as a focused pub operator and strengthens our representation in South and West Wales, whilst protecting the heritage and independence of an iconic Welsh business,” said Ralph Findlay, chief executive of Marston’s, in a statement.

“These high-quality pubs are a great fit with our existing estate and will benefit from Marston’s scale and operational expertise to further unlock their excellent long-term potential.”



Read More: Marston’s PLC to operate 156 Brains pubs in Wales

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