AGM: Public transport key to driving rural pubs to success - Kilkenny Live

The Kilkenny Vintners Federation held its Annual General Meeting in Langton House Hotel in Kilkenny earlier this month as publicans from across the city and county voiced their opinions and concerns over issues impacting them, their staff and customers.

In a wide-ranging meeting on the night, lack of suitable transportation, energy costs, the viability of serving food, insurance and the new local night-time economy initiative were just some of the points raised.

Speaking after the meeting, Chairman of the Local Vintners Federation, Anthony Morrison was pleased with proceedings and with the level of attendance, hosting approximately 38 member publicans on the night.

In some cases, publicans commute their customers to and from their business when no alternatives are available. A habit which is an unsustainable and a detriment to a business, according to Mr Morrison.

"You can’t really rely on the local publican because it ties an already busy schedule into an even more busy schedule, so if you’re collecting and delivering your patrons it’s not really sustainable in the long run," he said.

Mr Morrison, the owner of Christy’s Bar on Upper Patrick Street in Kilkenny City believes publicans need to adapt to the current climate but do needs supports at government level if they’re to continue to meet the needs of their customers.

"People are doing things differently this decade than they were last decade, it's up to us as publicans to adapt to the new environment but one thing we can’t adapt to is transportation. The government are pushing for sustainability and they seem to be pushing more for centralisation which in its own sense has positives but also has negatives on the pub side of things," he commented.

Mr Morrison doesn’t think the days of the rural pub are gone yet though, stating ‘viable’ measures could keep what is considered a stable in Irish life going for years to come.

"Somebody walking in the city has more access to more premises and someone doing business in the city has more access to more people, that being said some of the most fantastic and busiest pubs in Ireland are rural pubs so there is an opportunity for both to work hand in hand but but the transportation has to be delivered whether it be through key investment in local areas or through various discounts for whether it be a publican or local person taking on the job of ferrying people around, give them a grant based scenario," he said.

"Everything is being public transport driven but it’s very hard to beat that drum when the infrastructure isn’t even being spoken about,” he commented, highlighting the predicament many rural people find themselves in when assessing whether to go out and avail of the local hospitality market."

Meanwhile, in Kilkenny City, over two years ago, the local bus service was unveiled and has proved successful amongst commuters, with reportedly over 3,000 locals availing of the service in 2023 alone. Mr Morrison has seen the benefits firsthand, with many of his daytime customers availing of the service, in line with a slight increase in the number of people going to the pub earlier and returning home earlier.

However, despite being full of praise for the amenity, the proprietor of Christy’s Bar has suggested that a service that operates later into the evening locally may be worth consideration.

Those present on the night also called for more clarity between government and the hospitality sector as local publicans seek further information and what is expected of them before balancing the books.

"People aren’t sure where their cost base is going to end up and you know and I know when a cost base increases everything increases so if the government could nail down what’s expected by the employer and by the employee," Mr Morrison said.

The call for clarity comes as a number of measures continue to go through the hoops of the legislatory process. If implemented, moves such as a greater increase in pension contributions and sick days would be good for the 'lifestyle' of the employee and the business, but according to the local vintners chair, 'there just needs to be a balance between the government and the small to medium term enterprises.'

Another point raised among local vintners on the night was the difficulty in offering food as part of a business model, with a high VAT rate the main stumbling block.

"At the moment I pay 23% on alcohol, the food is similar. Like a lad having four pints and a lad having four dinners are two very different things. It has to be looked at it, now they are looking at it behind the scenes to see if there is a bracket that can be worked on on the VAT on food because they can't touch alcohol because if they touch it they have touch it all the way across the board whereas with food you can have sit down food or takeaway food and they can be too different VAT structures for both," Mr Morrison said, adding, service of food like WIFI is becoming an 'expectation.'

Many in the local industry and across the country will need extra supports such as lowering the VAT rate or grants for staff training to be able to provide a food service 'sustainably', Mr Morrison claimed.