HEINEKEN UK will today unveil its biggest-ever annual investment in its Star Pubs and Bars business in Scotland.
The drinks giant said it would invest a total of £4.4 million in its Scottish pubs business during 2018. It added that around 126 new jobs would be created in its pubs in Scotland as a direct result of the investment.
Heineken UK said that 63 per cent of the £4.4m would be spent on 14 “major transformational refurbishments” across Scotland.
It noted the vast majority of its 2,900 pubs across the UK are leased out to small businesses and entrepreneurs with a supply agreement.
Declaring the investments in Scotland would lead to “the premiumisation of drinks and the addition or expansion of food offers”, Heineken UK said: “The investments are tailored to ensure each pub’s proposition is relevant to the community where it’s based.”
Today’s investment announcement coincides with a visit by Rural Economy Secretary Fergus Ewing to Heineken’s UK headquarters in Edinburgh.
Mr Ewing said: “This investment of £4.4m by Heineken – their largest-ever investment in their pub portfolio in Scotland – will help open up opportunities for these businesses to be able to diversify and update their offer to better reflect what the market is looking for.”
Mick Howard, operations director of Star Pubs and Bars said: “We want pubs to prosper at the heart of their communities for generations to come and believe that they can do so when they are well-invested and run by good, motivated operators. They need to continue to evolve [to] meet changing consumer needs.”
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