Two popular long-term landlords are preparing to pour their final pints. Scott and Jaime Greatorex, who have propped up the bar at The New Inn in Keynsham for the past 18 years, say they will have to stop trading when their lease expires on April 8.
Despite running the pub together since 2004 and applying for a new lease, the brothers say the pub company that owns The New Inn is instead taking it back on as a managed house. They understand the venue will be taken over by the Craft Union Pub Company, a branch of Stonegate, which is one of the biggest companies in the sector.
The pub's final day has not yet been announced but Scott and Jaime anticipate it could be April 1 or 2, dependent on stock. The announcement has shocked members of the local community, who appear to be just as saddened as the brothers.
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Jaime told Bristol Live: "Our lease is coming to an end on April 8. We did apply for a new lease, but the pub company opposed it and are taking it back as a managed house. They're going to bring in a manager and run it differently, but I think it'll stay as The New Inn.
"We both drank in here when we were younger, moved on and then came back. Between the two families, we've run the pub for 30 years.
"We're Keynsham boys, so we knew a lot of people when we first started doing this. It's sad really, especially with the way it's gone. We've been through a pandemic and had debts, but the pub company is now taking it back."
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Jaime explained how he and his brother ended up running the pub. He added: "We're two brothers married to two sisters. My brother was with his wife first, and their parents ran this pub from the mid-80s to the early 90s. They were successful but moved to a different pub after the pub company didn't extend the lease.
"They were forced to move to a different pub and that was when Scott, my brother, started working for them. I started working with Scott when our mother-in-law was looking to recover.
"I knew the landlord of The New Inn and asked if it was ever put up for lease, could we get the first refusal. He left in 2004 and contacted me and we got the lease there and then."
Despite working within the hospitality sector for such a long period of time, the brothers have no plans to find a new pub once their lease at The New Inn comes to an end. Jaime said: "This trade is hard enough.
"We're not a big food pub, we're a boozer and that's how we always wanted to be but pubs have changed over the years and the kids don't drink like they used to, so that kind of trade has gone.
"It's become quieter over the years so it's not a job we'd want to go into again now, especially after we've built up a trade and then have it taken away from us just like that - especially after the pandemic when we were trying to build the business back up.
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"There are so many pubs in Keynsham it's hard to compete. We have high rents and there's a lot of free trade that are buying beer for cheaper and selling it for cheaper and we're trying to make ends meet by selling beer for more because the pub company charges extra."
As part of the closure, Scott and Jaime say they will have to carry out full dilapidation on the property as their lease included a full repair agreement. Therefore it is expected they won't trade in the final week of their lease.
Jaime added: "We hand the keys back April 8, and they've (Stonegate) suggested we don't trade that week. We haven't decided a date yet, it's all stock dependent but we're looking at April 1 or 2 for our final day and then that'll be it. It'll be very sad.
"We're trying to close down the business, but we're full repair and lease, so things have got to be repainted, tiles renewed etc. It's a big dilapidation that we've got to do. It's quite scary.
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"I've had messages on Facebook from people saying how happy they've been, about the time they've had here at The New Inn and how grateful they are for us being here."
Stonegate has been approached for comment.
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