From General Manager to Running Your Own Pub: Is It Time to Take the Next Step?

After years of managing pubs, you may find yourself wanting more of a say in the business you’ve become responsible for running. Not necessarily a different job or a bigger venue, but just more independence to make your own decisions on how the pub operates and the direction it takes.

For experienced General Managers, running a pub independently can be an interesting next step to consider. After all, you already know how to run a busy pub and will have gained much of the operational and commercial experience required to hit the ground running on your own. The biggest question is how that experience translates when you’re running the business for yourself, and we’ll be honest, it's not for everyone.

Why Experienced Pub Managers Consider Making the Move

For many experienced pub managers, the main attraction to running a pub independently comes from having more influence over the business and how it operates day to day. That greater control does, however, come with greater accountability, but still gives you way more scope to put your own ideas and experience into practice.

That might mean shaping the pub’s main offer around its current customers, building a new team around you, or deciding how the pub becomes more involved in its local community. You’ll also have more opportunity to think beyond simply hitting monthly targets and will be able to focus more on building your own business over the long term.

Running your own pub is certainly a different kind of responsibility, but for some GMs, that greater involvement in the actual direction of the pub is exactly what’s missing from their current role and is exactly what sparks the appeal to go it alone.

You May Already Have More of the Right Experience Than You Think

The experience you’ve gained managing a large food-led pub will have undoubtedly given you a strong foundation for one day running your own. You’ve probably got a lot more transferable skills than you might realise at first glance.

• Leading and retaining teams: You know how much of a difference a good team makes, but also how difficult it can be to recruit and keep the right people.
• Rotas and labour control: Getting staffing right for the level of trade while keeping labour costs where they need to be.
• Budgeting and P&L awareness: Knowing your numbers and, more importantly, understanding what’s behind them.
• Stock, food margins and waste: All areas where relatively small changes can make a noticeable difference to the bottom line.
• Service standards and compliance: Maintaining the standards expected of the pub while staying on top of your licensing and other responsibilities.
• Local marketing and events: Understanding what gets people through the door and what actually works for your local customers.
• Handling complaints and pressure: Problems happen. Experience teaches you when to step in, how to deal with them, and when a quick decision is needed.
• Turning customer insight into commercial decisions: Using what you know about your customers to decide what you offer and where the new opportunities are.

What Changes When You Move from Manager to Licensee or Operator?

Moving from managing a pub to running one for yourself means taking responsibility for more than just the day-to-day operation. You’re now running your own business, which means you now need to be thinking about business planning, cash flow, tax and staffing decisions alongside all the other stuff you were already doing with customer service, standards and compliance.

You’ll also need to consider the bigger picture. The reputation you build locally, the commitments you make under your agreement and how you deal with the inevitable pressures of running a business all become increasingly important.

Exactly where certain responsibilities and costs sit will depend on whether you choose to become an Admiral Taverns licensee or a Proper Pubs operator, and while they are both independent positions, there are some big differences. Whichever route you’re considering, make sure you fully understand the agreement and take independent legal and financial advice before making any commitment.

Which Admiral Route Could Suit You?

If running your own pub is something you’re seriously considering, there are two main routes available through Admiral Taverns.

The first is taking on an Admiral tenancy, where you’ll run your own pub business as a self-employed licensee. This gives you greater commercial control and more say in how you develop the business. How much capital you’ll need and exactly what you’ll be responsible for will depend on the agreement and the pub you take on.

The other option is becoming a self-employed Proper Pubs operator. You’ll still be responsible for running the pub and making the day-to-day decisions on your own, but you’ll be working within a more managed setup, with Proper Pubs covering the core operating costs included within the agreement.

The two routes are quite different, particularly when it comes to how the business is structured and the responsibilities you take on. You can read more about them on the Our Agreements and Operator Managed Pubs pages on our website.

Five Questions to Ask Yourself Before Making the Move

Running your first pub is a big step, so before you start looking seriously at opportunities, there are a few questions worth asking yourself.

1. Do I want accountability as well as autonomy? Having more control over the business also means you are responsible for the decisions you make.
2. Am I comfortable becoming self-employed? It’s a little different from having the security of an employed General Manager role and comes with added risks as well as benefits.
3. What capital and contingency do I have? Think about what you can comfortably invest and what you have available as a backup just in case.
4. Can I adapt my food-led experience to a specific local pub? What worked in one venue won’t necessarily be right for another, particularly when the customers and local community are different.
5. Am I ready to create a realistic business plan and take independent advice? Both will be important when you start assessing individual opportunities.

How Admiral Supports the Transition

Don’t worry, Admiral doesn’t expect you to blindly leave your job and start running your own pub without a decent support team behind you. We’ll provide training and ongoing support to get you up and running, although exactly what’s available will depend on the route you take.

You’ll work directly with your own Business Development Manager, who can help with business planning and the development of the pub, as well as induction and further learning as you find your feet and become more established. There’s also specialist support available in areas including marketing, food development, licensing and property, giving you access to additional expertise if and when you need it.

You can find more details about what’s available on Admiral’s Support and Training pages, including the support provided under the different routes.

Your Next Step

If you’re ready to see what running a pub with Admiral could look like, browse our available pubs to see the opportunities that are currently available. You can also compare the different agreement routes or speak directly to the recruitment team to answer any questions you might have.

Making an enquiry doesn’t mean you’re making a commitment. It’s simply the next step in finding out whether running your own pub could be the right direction for you.