Fuller’s buys the Lovely Pubs group for £22.5m

Fuller’s has purchased Warwickshire’s Lovely Pubs group for £22.5m.

The deal includes seven sites, six of which are freehold, situated in affluent commuter locations.

These include the Orange Tree in Chadwick End, the Boot Inn at Lapworth, the Farm in Monkspath, Morton’s Kitchen in Dickens Heath, the Baraset Barn in Alveston – which comes with 16 individually designed bedrooms, the Moat House Inn at Kings Coughton (pictured), and the Queen’s Head in Stoke Pound.

All 260 Lovely Pubs staff will keep their jobs following the sale while the group’s founders, who launched the business 30 years ago, will continue to work with Fuller’s.

Fuller’s said the “outstanding” sites were a “perfect fit” with its existing managed estate, which already includes the Bel & the Dragon inns with rooms in the home counties and Cotswold Inns & Hotels.

The pubs will continue to run under their existing offer under Fuller’s ownership.

Simon Emeny, chief executive of Fuller’s, said: “We are very careful when it comes to finding great sites to add to our iconic pub estate – and the Lovely Pubs business is a perfect match and a fantastic acquisition.

“It was established 30 years ago and is an excellent business with outstanding, well-invested sites offering delicious, fresh, locally sourced food, a great drinks range and a wonderful welcome. It adds scale to our presence within our geography and is a great next chapter in the Fuller’s story.”

Paul Salisbury, who co-founded Lovely Pubs with Paul Hales, said the opportunity to work with Fuller’s was “incredibly exciting”.

Fuller’s wider portfolio includes 339 managed and tenanted pubs and hotels across the country.