What you need to know before you apply.
What is a Tenant?
A tenant is a person (or persons) who enter into a contract with McMullen's to rent a pub, in order to operate their own business from the site. Once you’ve rented the business, you’ll have the freedom to operate it in your own way – from deciding what you’d like to offer your customers (subject to a tie on some drink products) to how you market the pub. You will also be responsible for employing and training staff (with our help) and controlling your costs and profit margins... it’s all down to you.
What is a Pub Operator ?
A pub operator is a person or persons who set up a limited company that enters into an agreement with McMullen's in order to operate one of our pubs on our behalf. The difference with a tenancy is that McMullen's is more involved. We own the drink trade but also deal with most of the administration and maintain while the pub operator focuses on the customer experience and staff management. We pay the operator an amount equal to a fixed percentage of the liquor trade and the operator is entirely responsible for the food operations The Pub Operator pay us a kitchen rent in return for which McMullen's cover all the other costs, such as rent, rates, utilities and additional operating expenses. See our AGREEMENTS section for more details.
What will it Cost?
This depends on whether you will be a tenant or a pub operator. Regardless of taking on a pub with McMullen's is a low-cost way to set up your own business, but it does need some investment from you. As well as a returnable deposit (£5,000 to £10,000 you may need to buy some of the pub’s fixtures and fittings from the previous operator: stock, glassware, crockery and cutlery. Apart from this you will need to have some working capital available to help you run your business. Amounts obviously vary from pub to pub so it’s important to consider carefully what size of investment you can afford.
We’re keen to ensure that talented entrepreneurs with limited resources have a chance to work with us. So, from time to time, we offer them ‘Stepping Stone’ pubs to help them get started. These agreements are dependent on the size and style of the pub and are offered only to those who we consider to be exceptional candidates – they’re only available as a means of starting your first business in the pub trade and not for experienced publicans. Here the entrance costs are lower and the tenant has a greater ability to leave the pub at short notice.
When you leave the business you will, of course, be able to sell the fixtures and fittings to the next operator as well as the glassware and stock. We’ll then return your deposit with interest, minus any outstanding monies owed to McMullen's.

See our APPLICATION PROCESS section for more information on costs.
Where can you find Professional Advice?
Taking on the challenge of running your own pub is like any other business, therefore we strongly recommend that you seek professional advice and do your research thoroughly to ensure you’re aware of all the information needed before taking any business decision. See our APPLICATION PROCESS section for a detailed list of helpful trade and professional bodies you’d be well advised to consult.