The Grapes has stood on the corner of Roscoe Street since 1775.
A pillar of Liverpool city centre's Georgian Quarter and one of its most distinctive pubs, The Grapes' unconventional décor, wide range of affordable local ales and its weekly live jazz have made it an institution. For many, no night out is complete without passing through its doors.
However, the past few years have presented a number of existential threats to the hospitality industry - from which The Grapes has certainly not been immune. After the Covid-19 pandemic sparked a fight for survival (the street corner pub was too compact for social distancing), the ongoing cost of living crisis arrived hot on its heels.
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Venues across the country face a bleak landscape and there are now fewer pubs in England and Wales than ever before. 7,000 pubs closed in the last decade, including 200 between the end of 2021 and the end of June 2022. The total number now stands at 39,973 - the first time on record that it has dropped below 40,000.
As operating costs increase and the cost of living eats into customers' disposable income, the ECHO spoke to The Grapes' owner Anna Slater about the challenges facing The Grapes and the hospitality industry. Asked about the trials of the last few years, Anna said: " It just feels like body blow after body blow at the moment. This is an independent pub - we have no support, it’s just me. During covid, we clung on by our fingertips and kind of came through it."
Now having to weather the storm of inflation, Anna is having to make some changes. She explained: “Though we are trading strongly - we haven’t really had a drop in trade, but the knock on effect is that I’ve got to respect the fact that my staff’s expenses have gone up.
"We pay way above minimum wage anyway, but I’m looking at having to provide a reasonable pay rise to my staff so that they can afford to live. Regardless of the figure that the government gives you, that’s pushing them down the scale towards poverty. Our expenses have gone up and I’ve got to pay the staff more - you just have to."
For Anna, ensuring that people have money to spend is the key - not just for her pub, but for the economy as a whole. She said: "I f I’ve got £20 in my pocket and I put it over the bar, that then gets spent on something else and goes to someone else - it can go into a local shop. That money gets passed around.
"If people haven’t got money to spend, the economy starts to grind to a halt. It’s not just a pub issue, but it doesn’t make sense to me to pay people low wages.
"I don’t understand why you would do that - it doesn’t make sense. If I pay my staff a proper living wage, the whole of society is going to benefit, because that money is in circulation, my staff are going to be happier and they will enjoy their job more."
She added: " For me, it’s good business sense to pay your staff well - they’re your front line. They take the money over the bar. You want a happy bar staff, what that adds to the atmosphere is massive."
However, the rise in operating costs is compounded by the fact that the customers have less disposable income as the cost of living crisis deepens. Soaring energy bills and inflation mean that UK households are predicted to be £1,200 poorer this time next year. The Bank of England announced earlier this week that the UK is on the brink of recession, while inflation could peak at 13.3% later this year.
Though The Grapes has not suffered a drop in trade this year, Anna said that increased operating costs will mean higher drink prices. The pub is among the city centre's most affordable venues, but Anna fears that a price rise will have a negative effect on trade, but she has no other way to cover increased costs.
Despite that, Anna thinks that people will still seek the escapism and social nature of a trip to the pub. She said: " What we’ve found before, when there’s been deep recession and people haven’t had much money, is that if you’ve got £20 in your back pocket at the end of the week - it’s not going to pay your rent or your mortgage, but it can take you down the pub, you can relax your worries away, you can see your mates, you can have a laugh, you can have a little dance.
"So people will go to the pub with that £20 - even if it’s all they’ve got. For value for money, going to the pub is a much more soul-satisfying experience. It might not solve your financial problems, so people might think ‘we’ll go the pub anyway'.”
Anna remains philosophical about what is in store for The Grapes in spite of a bleak financial forecast. She said: " I don’t know what’s going to happen over the next few months. I don’t feel that positive about the future, but I do feel that the pub will survive.
"I think we’re well enough established, we’re a destination pub and I think people love us enough that even if it’s down to that last £20 in their back pocket, people will still feel a part of The Grapes. We might drop, we might not have any profit after paying the staff and the bills, but that’s not a big deal for me. It doesn’t matter, I’m not one of the big corporations - it’s more important to me that my staff are happy working, my customers are happy drinking and my pub is surviving."
She continued: "I don’t know what’s going to happen and I can’t stress about it. There’s nothing I can do to shore up the edges, because we’ve just come out of covid. There’s nothing there for me to ferret away or to use to tide us over. We just have to keep going.
" I’m proud of what we’ve done here, we’ve saved it and we fought tooth and nail for it. But The Grapes will still be here in another 100 years. She’s been here since 1775, she deserves to still be here."
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