Having been out of the business for three years due to illness, Keith Marsden is now back at the Prince of Wales in Birmingham, a pub he originally joined in 2007. BII’s Eleanor Kirby chatted about cultivating excellence, bringing Mexican delights to Moseley and winning LOYA in 2015.
Theatre and entertainment that comes with the Tiki and Wine Shed have been put on ice for a while, on the warming plate instead are Marsden’s new foodie ventures. Inspired by his travels to California and its Mexican influence (“CalMex” as it’s known) Leaf Lovers and Taconistas have been developed to power the Prince of Wales into the delivery market. “We originally wanted it to be on Deliveroo as a migration strategy, but now have agreements with Just Eat and Uber Eats too. Leaf Lovers is our vegan street food brand created in December and Taconistas is my magpie idea. I saw some “shiny things” in America and thought I’d bring that creativity back to the UK.”
With Keith finding commission rates high across the board on the delivery apps (between 30-40%), he notes the balancing act of raising prices as not being entirely sustainable. “We did our market research and found one operator charging £16 for a burger to be delivered. Sure, when you pick up your phone at 7:30pm on a Friday and you’ve had a wine, you probably don’t care what you pay, but it’s not going to create an affinity with that business.”
As a migration strategy though, Keith says it works well. “It’s all about who owns the customer, and the apps own them at the moment. Strong branding, using the help of our designer and my marketing experience, will make the two feel recognisable standing alone, without the barrier of the apps.” Working to a GP of 50%, spend per head is between £25-28 for both brands, but the goal is to get this over £30, to help rebuild after an 85% reduction in revenue over the past 18 months.
Leaf Lover’s vegan menu is a personal choice for Keith, as well as following the savvy trend. “We’re not campaigners, but it’s a lifestyle change – to help community health, as well as the planet. But we don’t compromise on taste.” Appealing to vegans, meat-eaters and flexitarians alike, the Leaf Lovers Kitchen is making its way to its own venue, despite utilising a similar range of ingredients (bar the vegan components) as Taconistas. On offer will be mains such as “Tofish and Chips” (marinated tofu in wakame batter), “Chilli non Carne” and “Chicken” burgers, with classic twists on sides such as “Pomegranate Molasses Slaw” with vegan mayonnaise.
It’s a move that sees the business open up into a wider brand that encourages footfall between pub, café and virtually via online ordering. A BII member since 2009, the CORE principles are also down to Marsden’s Licensee of the Year Award entry and eventual win in 2015. “I’m interested in excellence, and what better recognition for that is there than LOYA?”
Kickstarting entrants into merging all areas of their business from finance to experience, staffing and online presence, Keith hails the journey as being a valuable management tool. “It helped us look at the business in a different light, and was a great process to help us improve our performance as well as reflect on it. We entered twice, the first time we got to the finalists stage, but I think we eventually won because the process forced us to aim higher.
“Running a pub is a tough and competitive business right now, LOYA is a true test but you’re encouraged to interact with your other finalists, their operations, and learn from their excellence.” Keith couldn’t have come back to the business at a busier time, but using his time away from the industry to gather inspiration and regroup was time well spent. Whether you’re a leaf lover, taconista, savour the flavour of wine, or are freaky for Tiki, Keith has woven excellence into everything.
