The Pelican Inn is a traditional English Public House located in Devizes, a typical bustling market town in Wiltshire. This friendly venue has been operated by the same family for four generations, with the beginning of June 2024 marking 70 years since they first took the reins. Sarah-Jane Burt, part of the current generation in charge at The Pelican Inn, tells the BII's Max Burke MBII all about the family’s magnificent journey.

On the 5th of June 1954, Sarah-Jane’s mother, Natalie, moved to The Pelican Inn from nearby town Swindon with her parents Frank and Lillian Goodman to take on the tenancy. Their decision came after Lillian (Sarah’s Grandmother) had worked in pubs and clubs in Swindon, and Frank (Sarah’s Grandfather) had worked for Great Western Railway. This decision to move to the pub came after many years of working life, wanting some independence and to become self-employed.

During their early days at the pub, Lillian worked behind the bar and helped with the lodgers in the letting rooms at the pub, delivering bowls of hot water to each room every morning & night, as there was no such thing as running hot water to the letting rooms then!

Frank sadly passed away in 1970, but Lillian was allowed by Major Bartholomew to continue holding the license in her name – something that was very unusual in those days. Sarah-Jane’s mother and Frank and Lillian’s daughter, Natalie, supported in the pub on evenings and weekends alongside her partner and Sarah-Jane’s father, although they continued their own daytime jobs until Lillian passed away in 1987.

Sarah-Jane’s parents made considerable changes to The Pelican Inn after taking it on following Lillian’s passing. The bar areas that had previously been for private use were opened up and the business flourished with regular live music and discos. At the time, they also had four darts teams two pool teams and a football team, who all looked on Natalie and her partner as a second Mum and Dad. In Sarah-Jane’s own words, there was a great community feel with regulars of all ages enjoying the friendly welcome of The Pelican.

Natalie’s partner and Sarah-Jane’s father unfortunately passed away after a long illness five years ago, something the family felt the full effect of with him being an amazing character and it was a great loss to the venue and its locals.

Sarah-Jane has continued to run The Pelican Inn alongside her mother Natalie and her partner David, aided by their two daughters Natasha (23) and Zoe (17). The pub found the covid pandemic a great pressure and a real challenge from a business point of view, surviving due to their ability to offer take away food that they delivered to the vulnerable and accommodation to key workers.

Despite always working behind the bar from as soon as she was old enough, Sarah-Jane now says she is happiest in the kitchen, with The Pelican Inn having a great reputation for homecooked food, notably their Sunday Roast.

Turning her hand to every job in the pub, Natalie still works behind the bar and keeps all of the books for the business, always gaining five-star reviews from customers. Extremely proud of her and her family’s achievements, Sarah-Jane has a message for her mother expressing her gratitude for so many amazing years at The Pelican Inn.

“All I can say is that my Mum is a legend in every sense of the word.  She has been a role model for several generations now and is a friend to everyone.

“She always says it has been a gift and an honour to be a part of so many people’s lives, through not only the good times, but also the bad.

“Times have changed a great deal in hospitality, meaning you have to work ever harder to succeed, but she is a firm believer that you must move with those times in order to succeed!

“She has always said running a pub is a way of life.  You can't count the hours you have worked, when you start doing that it's time to move on!

“Everyone says she is the most welcoming person you could ever meet; nothing is too much trouble, and she treats everyone the same.  Our front door is a Golden Door, you never know who may walk in!”

The BII would like to congratulate Sarah-Jane, Natalie and the whole family on their outstanding achievement of 70 years at the helm at The Pelican Inn, and we hope to see them continue for many years to come.

Running a pub in a small village may have seemed like a romantic idea, but behind the cosy and welcoming atmosphere lie numerous challenges. Tim and Jos Nash MBII, the operators of the crown inn in Lanlivery, Cornwall, share their story and insights with the BII’s Ben Mueller MBII

Tim and Jos Nash’s introduction into the pub industry was not through the usual route. Living in Lanlivery in Cornwall, a small village with a lacklustre pub experience, they saw an opportunity when the lease for the local pub became available. 

“In our small village, the pub was a central hub of social activity. However, over the years it had lost its charm and sense of community. Having grown up in the village and waitressed back in my youth, I remembered how busy and lively the pub used to be, and Tim and I truly believed we could bring it back to that,” says Jos. This belief, coupled with their complementary skill sets – Tim’s background in clothing retail and customer service, and Jos’s expertise in event management and compliance – they took the leap into running their first pub. 

The reality of running a pub has naturally brought its fair share of challenges. 

One of the biggest hurdles was underestimating rising costs. Despite meticulous planning and forecasting, and allowing a 20% increase across the board, it wasn’t enough. The energy price hikes, which affected most other suppliers, including laundry which, for example, went up 28% and had a huge impact on profitability. 

“Our rent alone went up 28% just after the first full year’s trading owing to a big jump in RPI which the lease is linked to,” says Tim. The minimum wage increase, although factored in, has had another big impact with another rise due in April 2024. Tim and Jos count themselves lucky with their very loyal and dedicated team, and they have made concerted efforts to retain them through fair treatment and occasional perks. 

“We applied a small loyalty increase. So for every year you work, your pay goes up. It’s letting them know that we are looking after them and rewarding their long service,” says Tim. 

Tim and Jos’s approach to staff management is focused on fair compensation and recognition, which has seen them maintain good retention rates. Additionally, occasional team outings and experiences, such as team dinners, strengthen camaraderie helping to build a really positive work culture. Encouraging young people to join their workforce has helped to solidify them in their community and ensures they are building a talent pipeline for the future of the pub. 

In the face of rising costs, Tim and Jos knew that they needed to keep a close eye on their cashflow, and have always kept a very close eye on the numbers, ensuring they continuously review and adapt their business plan. “We look at our margins and cashflow all the time to see where we can tweak stuff. We also check what costs we have coming in on a daily basis,” says Tim. They closely monitor expenses, scrutinise invoices, and make necessary adjustments to maintain their gross profit margins making sure to keep a good balance of quality and value. This approach allows them to be agile and adaptable, meaning they can tackle each challenge head-on, while staying true to their vision for the pub. 

Setting their pub apart from others in the area, Tim and Jos focused on creating a warm, welcoming atmosphere, bringing the best bits of traditional pubs into The Crown Inn. They consciously avoided the trend of gastro-pub transformation, instead prioritising quality food and a dedicated space for drinkers, allowing them to take care of their regulars, keeping them at the heart of their community. Embracing sustainability, they source local produce and minimise waste, reflecting their commitment to their rural community and its values. “We don’t use any single use plastics, and none of our waste goes to landfill. We’re in the centre of quite a rural farming community. Our potatoes come from two fields away, they don’t even go into a freezer! We also got to make the most of our location and had venison and pheasant all last winter,” says Jos. 

Despite the challenges, one of the most rewarding moments for Tim and Jos came from seeing their pub bustling with life during Christmas. “It was like the whole village was in here. Wall-to-wall, rafter-to-rafter,” says Tim. 

The sense of community spirit among villagers is strong and reaffirms their belief in the importance of the pub as a social hub. Their efforts to create a welcoming space where locals can meet and feel at home have paid off in the form of positive feedback and a continuously growing loyal customer base. Trade continues to grow with a more than 60% increase in turnover since taking the pub on in 2022. Review scores have improved and they are now receiving consistent top marks on Trip advisor and Google. 

Reflecting on their journey, Tim and Jos offer valuable advice for aspiring pub owners. They emphasise the importance of careful financial planning, and maintaining a business-oriented mindset: “It is not simply enough to be a welcoming host!” They stress the need for realistic expectations and resilience in the face of setbacks. They also emphasise how important it is to thoroughly do your due diligence before buying into anything, “don’t accept that there is a Fire Certificate – get the certificate checked by a professional as this could save you some very expensive costs in the long run,” they advise. 

It’s about checking all the paperwork and if you are new to running pubs, use professionals to cast an eye on anything that is compliance based. Make sure that you’re making a decision based on business sense – use your head, not your heart, they say. 

“Be 100% sure you’re making a business decision, not a romantic fuzzy hot decision. And then, if you decide to go ahead, go for it! Be prepared for hard work. Running a pub is not for the faint-hearted but it certainly is exciting, challenging and rewarding.” 

Looking ahead, Tim and Jos’s primary goal is to achieve profitability and sustainability for their pub. Despite the financial challenges to the industry as a whole, they remain committed to their vision, using their experience and learning from past mistakes to steer their business towards success. With their focus on fantastic hospitality and their hard work to bring a sense of community, they will ensure that their pub remains a cherished institution in their village.