Greene King is making significant investments in understanding customer behavioural trends that are driving the future of socialising, according to Jodie Tate, managing director of Destination Brands and Ventures at the pub company.
Speaking at MCA’s Pub Conference, Tate told delegates that experiential venues will be key investments for the 2,700-strong pub company when it comes to driving frequency and sales.
Tate oversees a portfolio of destination brands including Chef & Brewer, Farmhouse Inns, and Hungry Horse.
“The future of socialising is changing,” she said. “Everything is connected. Digital will take a bigger role in the future of the pub, but connection and community remains at the heart.
“We have to remember that to create great experiences and teams.”
Tate took the example of The Ubiquitous Chip in Glasgow, a multi-concept Greene King venue that offers multiple bars, a brasserie, a restaurant, and a terrace under one roof.
The city centre venue is a popular destination both for tourists and the local community, according to Tate.
The uniqueness of the concept means it is unlikely to be rolled out further; however, the group is looking to roll out learnings from the success of The Ubiquitous Chip.
“The experiential element is at the top of our list of investments,” she disclosed. “We’re investing because it’s really going to help us understand customers and their behaviour.
“We can improve frequency by tapping into the kind of environment you have to create to make customers come more often.”
Underlying operations behind destination venues should be simple, Tate added, supported by investment in tech.
Her advice to operators looking to build such a venue is to “get the team right.”
“The team has to understand their local community,” she explained. “The second thing is site selection.
“In the past, we’ve gone in heart over head. Now we have more data than ever before…you’ve got to understand that before setting up a destination site.”
