There are fears for the future of a number of pubs in Hammersmith & Fulham after the sale of pub giant and brewer Greene King to Hong Kong conglomerate CKA.

Suffolk-based Greene King’s runs a number of pubs in the borough - riverside bar The Crabtree, the Havelock Tavern and The Rutland Arms in Hammersmith and The Queen Adelaide in Shepherd's Bush as well The Durrell Arms in Fulham Road and The Butcher's Hook at Stamford Bridge, which has just reopened after been given a 'six figure' refurbishment.

Overall its estate includes roughly 2,700 pubs, restaurants and hotels in total across the UK. The deal is worth £2.9 billion.

Neil Wilson, analyst at Markets.com, told BBC News while the deal was good news for shareholders, it was likely to be bad news for Greene King's customers. "I think we can comfortably expect more pub closures. It's a whopping price that implies CKA sees significant value in the property portfolio," he said.

Market analysts are saying that the weakness of sterling has provided an opportunity for CKA to acquire a significant asset base in the UK which they can choose to continue to operate as pubs or develop at the appropriate time.

CKA said it is a long-term and strategic investor in stable, profitable and cash flow generating businesses that benefit
from real estate backing. "CKA believes that the United Kingdom pub and brewing sector shares these characteristics and that pubs will continue to be an important part of British culture and the eating and drinking out market."

Greene King chief executive Nick Mackenzie said CKA shared "many of Greene King's business philosophies".

"They understand the strengths of our business and we welcome their commitment to working with the existing management team, evolving the strategy and investing in the business to ensure its continued long-term growth," he added.

All these pubs were part of a group called Realpubs until they were taken over by Greene King in 2011. At the time, the company described the takeover as part of an ongoing strategy to strengthen its London presence and expand in time for the 2012 Olympics.

 

August 28, 2019