Heineken has announced a £44.5 million investment in its UK pubs, expected to create around 850 jobs. The Dutch brewer's Star Pubs arm, which operates 2,350 sites, will upgrade 647 venues, with 108 receiving at least £145,000 each for major transformations.
The investment comes amid a challenging period for the pub sector, which has faced rising labour costs, higher national insurance contributions, and constrained consumer spending due to inflation and unemployment concerns. However, pubs recently received additional business rates support from the government.
Lawson Mountstevens, managing director of Star Pubs, said the investment aims to boost revenues and help the group navigate sustained cost increases. A focus will be on sports venues ahead of the 2026 football World Cup. Work has already begun at 52 locations, including eight projects to reopen long-closed pubs.
Since 2018, Heineken has invested £328 million in British pubs. Mountstevens urged the government to reduce the tax burden on pubs, calling for reform of business rates and lower VAT and beer duty. “We are calling on the Government to support us in bringing out the best in the Great British pub,” he said.
