The changing market structure
As can be see in the figure below the numbers of pubs overall has reduced steadily since 1990 and in these figures we can clearly see the effect of the beer orders. These figures can also be seen in the House of Commons Library Briefing paper number 8591
Figure 1. Pub market structure since 1990
Pubs owned by brewers decrease rapidly in 1990, 1991 and 1992 and again in 2000 and 2001. This reflects the initial forced sale of pubs above the cap. PubCos starting from no pubs in 1990 quickly fill this gap buying up the pubs sold by breweries. Independent, freehold pub numbers remain steady but grow a little later in the period (from 19,800 in 1997 to 23,400 in 2019).
In 1990 69% of pubs were owned by brewers, none by pubcos and 31% were independent. By 2000 18% were owned by brewers, 50% by pubcos and 32% were independent. In 2019 21% were owned by brewers, 29% by pubcos and 50% were independent. However overall pub numbers dropped significantly over this period.
Over to you
What do you think about this change?
Pubs: History, Consumers, Management, and Protection
Pubs: History, Consumers, Management, and Protection
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