Christmas is the season to create amazing memories, with the goal that every customer leaves the pub happy and keen to return. ’Tis the season of nostalgia and a time to reconnect, as friends, family and work colleagues come together to celebrate.
Creating experiences for customers to enjoy is what Tim Bird FBII does best. He owns the Cheshire Cat Pubs & Inns company, with his wife Mary McLaughlin, and they have seven award winning pubs in Cheshire and Staffordshire.
“We put on a full events programme in each of our pubs for December. We mail it out in November and feature what’s coming up on our [online] events page. We usually wait for the clocks to change at the end of October before publicising our festive plans. That’s when our autumn activities begin — once bonfire night is over,” says Tim, who will host food and drink matching events, like British Pie Week and Curry in the Country nights, where they offer five different curry dishes matched with wine, beer or both.
“Quiz nights come into play in the autumn too — we don’t bother with them in the summer, because everyone is out in the garden. Our quiz master comes up with festive themes and we find it’s a time that people with families want to do things.”
In November, Cheshire Cat maps out its full list of events for December, which include hosting the Christmas choir, having a festive band to come and play, plus carols and more. “At the Bulls Head we find the whole village comes out for our carol night, it has become a Christmas tradition.”
Tim continues: “It’s about creating a shopping basket of events and things going on from December 1 that people can chose from. Mary and I run the business with intensity and when we get asked how to make events better, we say ‘turn them into an institution’— an d that’s about starting an event and sticking with it year-after-year.
Tim explains: “You make it better and better each year. We find that local families remember coming along at the start, and actively look forward to it. You’ll find that each year you’ll need to put another person or two on the bar, get a bigger kettle for the mulled wine and so on. It’s about learning from the year before — correct anything that didn’t work as well as it could have done, but don’t give up on it.”
Often, Tim says, operators are looking for instant wins, when it can take a few years to really build an event into a success. “You might start something that attracts 100 people, but in 10 years’ time, that event will be attracting 1,000 people. It’s the same with our Christmas jumper competition. At first there were only three people turning up in a festive jersey, but the following year more made the effort. Before you know it, 100 people will be coming along to try and win the competition.”
People also like events and something to do between Christmas and New Year, says Tim. And coming up with weird and wacky ideas can really capture people’s imagination. Tim has great memories of an Irish pub that holds a Christmas cow pat competition each year.
“The local farmer brings a few cows into a field and everyone waits for the first cow to crap. The field has been marked up, so people can take a guess as to where that first pat might fall in order to win. It can take 40 minutes for the cow to perform, but it means everyone is in the pub for longer. It’s bonkers.
“If you’ve got a river or stream nearby, a duck race is always good fun. On an otherwise sleepy New Year’s Day, when everyone is over-fed and nursing a hang-over, getting them outside is great.
“We put on hangover brunches and we find that people will trot down to the pub, after a walk. They’ve done some exercise and want the reward after. They come into the pub all rosy cheeked with friends and family. It’s a glorious feeling.”
Catering for people and their pets makes good business sense, with Tim pointing out that 30% of people at The Bulls Head in Mobberley now have a dog. Other changes he has noted, post-Covid, include that everyone is more prepared to sit outdoors, even when it’s cold. “They are happy to brace the cold, as they’ll arrive wrapped up in fleeces and with scarfs. As long as it’s not raining, they will be fine.”
Making sure the garden is set-up and ready to welcome customers is important over the autumn and winter months, as it will encourage people to sit outdoors.
“When all the garden brollies have been packed away, it can be easy to forget about the garden area. But making sure the ash trays are laid out regimentally, for instance, with the whole area looking smart and tidy is essential. Image is important and on those chilly days when the sun is shining, if the area looks inviting, people will be happy to be outdoors.”
