Hubert Beatson-Hird, The Hunter’s Moon: Back to Business Q&A

By Jo Gilbert

Published: 18 August, 2020

As the trade measures up to extraordinary times and swings into the height of summer, leading businesses and operators take stock of trading conditions in the new normal.

Hubert Beatson-Hird, owner and director of upscale London gastropub, The Hunter’s Moon, continues our series with insights into shifting sales patterns, the road to recovery and a – gradual – return of consumer confidence.

How is the business performing and what are sales like compared with pre-lockdown?

We’re definitely still not back to where we were, particularly owing to the fact that we’ve had to reduce table numbers to allow for social distancing. We are slowly getting there and the Eat Out To Help Out scheme has been a major help in this, but we’re definitely not entirely out of the woods yet.

What are the biggest changes and challenges in adjusting to the ‘new norm’?

I think consumer confidence is a real challenge for us, as the situation changes so swiftly, as does the government advice, and if we do see another full lockdown it would be quite disastrous. To build confidence, we’re of course doing everything and more that we can to make the customers feel at ease. This includes an increased cleaning regimen, and it’s quite bizarre that before all of this a golden rule was for customers not to see cleaning products or equipment, whereas now customers want to see that to be reassured, and I think that’s something that will stick around for quite a while.

Which government measures, if any, have had an impact on your business and have you been passing on or absorbing savings?

Furlough has been a tremendous help to us. It allowed us to keep on our 32 team members and protect their livelihood, and I’m so grateful for that.

Have you seen any significant shift in type and price of wines and spirits sold and, if so, what?

In terms of from our suppliers, we haven’t seen any real change fortunately. Coming from a consumer side, we have found consistently that customers are ordering from further down the wine list rather than just going for the house bottle. I think perhaps people are so relieved to be out and about again that they’re looking to indulge just a little bit more which is of course great for us.

Covid-19 has ignited discussions around health, not least the government’s anti-obesity campaign which could see mandatory ‘hidden calorie’ content on alcohol labels and menus in the on-trade. In your view, what would be the impact of this?

I think it’s simply far too big of an ask of businesses, particularly in the current climate and particularly for small independents who are just doing their best to survive at the moment. We simply don’t have time to do this, especially given how often we change and update our menus, and I think it would really stifle creativity.

And what of other government-backed schemes like the Eat Out to Help Out initiative, on the health of the trade?

Eat Out to Help Out has been amazing for us. In July after lockdown ended, on a Monday and Tuesday lunchtime we were doing single digit covers, whereas this week we did 30 covers on a Monday lunchtime. It’s no coincidence and is a direct result of the scheme, so we’re thrilled, and just hope that come September when the scheme ends people are still motivated to go out.

The end to the Brexit transition period is just around the corner on 1 January. How have you been preparing during and post-lockdown?

To be honest Brexit simply hasn’t been a focus for us during this time, it’s just not a priority in terms of where we need to put our energy.

Have the past few months led to any positive change that the trade can and should adopt going forward?

Whilst the past few months have been devastating, and it is incredibly sad how many businesses have disappeared as a result of the lockdown, it was a rare opportunity for the industry to actually take some real time to sit back and reflect on the state of business. Hospitality is so fast paced all the time that it can be easy to get caught in the day to day, but having this time to really think about what we want to achieve with our business has been a real positive. We’ve already seen so much creativity from businesses adapting to survive, and I think this will only continue.

Covid-19, recession, Brexit, climate crisis – we’re living though extraordinary times – what will the biggest challenges for the drinks trade going ahead?

I think inevitably a second lockdown is currently the biggest challenge for the industry. Many businesses were hanging on by a thread and are now just starting to get back on their feet, and I’m sure many simply wouldn’t survive that second hit.

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