When the pub dies, more goes with it than just a pint.
I saw an interview with AJ Tracey the other day and it hit the nail on the head.
Pubs are part of British culture. They’re where people meet. Where ideas are shared. Where strangers debate politics, sport, life. Where worldviews get challenged, rightly so, all over a pint.
But now? £7 pints at a push. Hundreds of closures. Fewer places to gather. Less cross-generational conversation. More isolation. More echo chambers.
If people aren’t meeting, they’re not talking. If they’re not talking, they’re not listening. And that, long term, leads to narrower thinking and a more divided society.
Reviving the pub isn’t about nostalgia. It’s about rebuilding our social fabric.
I don’t want to connect my coffee machine to the wifi network. I don’t want to share the file with OneDrive. I don’t want to download an app to check my car’s fluid levels. I don’t want to scan a QR code to view the restaurant menu. I don’t want to let Google know my location before showing me the search results. I don’t want to include a Teams link on the calendar invite. I don’t want to pay 50 different monthly subscription fees for all my software. I don’t want to upgrade to TurboTax platinum plus audit protection. I don’t want to install the Webex plugin to join the meeting. I don’t want to share my car’s braking data with the actuaries at State Farm. I don’t want to text with your AI chatbot. I don’t want to download the Instagram app to look at your picture. I don’t want to type in my email address to view the content on your company’s website. I don’t want text messages with promo codes. I don’t want to leave your company a five-star Google review in exchange for the chance to win a $20 Starbucks gift card. I don’t want to join your exclusive community in the metaverse. I don’t want AI to help me write my comments on LinkedIn. I don’t even want to be on LinkedIn in the first place.
I just want to pay for a product one time (and only one time), know that it’s going to work flawlessly, press 0 to speak to an operator if I need help, and otherwise be left alone and treated with some small measure of human dignity, if that’s not too much to ask anymore.
When a restaurant tells you it “isn’t breaking even”, the answer isn’t to hope “bookings pick up”. Restaurants all have an income to cost ratio sweet spot in which they make profit. The issue comes when taxes & regulation over which they have no control wipe out that sweet spot
This is the HQ of Avis Capital. It claims to be one of the largest companies in the UK, with £58bn in assets and 31% returns promised to investors.
Except it's all a lie.
Here's how regulatory failures are letting international fraudsters create massive fake UK companies.
Reuse your bottle, refill with a can ♻️
Refill cans are now available. Like for like refills for your favourite Vault juice. Better for the environment, lightweight and more economical. What’s not to love?
https://t.co/EhCPomP692
#recycleweek#refill#vaultaperitivo
I would love @RishiSunak to come to my pub @TheWhiteHorsePu but they’ll be no PR photoshoot of you pulling a pint behind the bar. You can sit at a table with me while I show you my accounts & explain why business isnt currently viable under your government. I’ll get you a water.