Social networking bid to get people back into the pubs

Oct 27 2009 by Karen Dent, The Journal

A FAMILY business is aiming to lure people back into pubs using the power of social networking.

Bob Rudd Leisure (BRL), which operates gaming and amusement machines in more than 400 licensed premises across the North, wants to attract gamers in the virtual world and persuade them into the pub.

Marketing and operations director Nick Rudd, whose father Bob founded the Newcastle firm 20 years ago with a single jukebox, said: “We are the first to do this through social networking. Innovation is what the pubs need.

“Social networking is an undervalued tool for every sort of business. We are targeting the players and users of social networking to drive them to the machines. We are developing a player website where they can go on to discuss the machines. We’ll put up where the new machines are and organise competitions.”

The pilot - called Machine Champions Night - will be held at The Station in Killingworth on December 5. BRL will promote the night heavily in the pub and online beforehand.

The firm, which provides everything from jukeboxes and pool tables to quiz machines, has an annual turnover of around £4.5m.

Mr Rudd, whose father and company founder Bob left school at 14 with no qualifications, says he is expecting turnover to rise by “at least” 25% this year, despite the well-reported effects of the recession on the leisure industry. He said smaller companies like BRL were doing better because they were able to win business from the larger nationals through offering better service.

“The average industry performance of the national companies has dwindled. A lot of smaller pub companies and free trade pubs are preferring to go with the regional suppliers,” he said.

“We may be £5 a week or so more expensive but our service is better and they’re making more money from the machine. If a machine goes down on a Friday night, we’ll be there on a Friday night.”

Mr Rudd says all parts of the industry from breweries to suppliers have to work together to attract people into pubs during the economic downturn.

“We’re trying to do that little bit to drive footfall into the pubs, so we’re more like retail support,” he said.

“It’ll make pubs more pleasurable and people will stay in the pubs a bit longer.”

The company opened four additional depots five years ago in Keswick, Castleford, Warrington and Newark to extend its geographical reach, which spreads from the Borders to Nottinghamshire. Including the staff at firm’s headquarters in Newcastle, BRL now employs 80 people.

However, Mr Rudd is not planning any further expansion in the current economic climate.

But he added: “A lot of the national companies are struggling; there are a lot of opportunities there. You never say never.”