Pubs ‘n’ Bars has disposed of two poor performing leasehold managed pubs for more than £50,000, the group announced today.

The company sold the Meyrick Arms in Clapham and the Brixton Hobgoblin, both in south London, for £22,058 and £34,159 respectively.

Mel Belligero, chief executive of the group, said: “In line with the company’s stated strategy, we continue to dispose selectively of poor performing sites but remain acquisitive.”

In September the company became one of the first to draw a direct link between lukewarm trading this summer and the introduction of the smoking ban in England.

Most operators had blamed the appalling summer weather for flat sales to that point but Pubs’n’Bars said while the poor weather confused the impact the ban was likely to have contributed to a 4% slide in its sales since July.

Pubs’n’Bars owns and operates 96 community pubs, mostly in the south of England, which it describes as “locals” with “character” with the majority of customers coming from the immediate area.

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By Chris Druce

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