Liberation Group buys eight English pubs from SA Brain

Liberation Group has acquired eight English pubs from SA Brain to add to its estate of Butcombe pubs.

The deal for the six managed and two tenanted sites (seven of which are freehold), means that Butcombe, which is centred around the West Country, has now doubled its estate over the past year to 43 sites.

Meanwhile, SA Brain indicated that it aims to focus its licensed retail operations within Wales, where it operates 100 managed houses and a tenanted estate of over 70 pubs.

The six managed pubs are:

The Smoking Dog in Malmesbury, Wiltshire
The Bear in Cirencester, Gloucestershire
The Bowl in Almondsbury (including 11 bedrooms), Bristol
The Ostrich in Bristol
The Jubilee in Flax Bourton, Somerset
The White Horse in Buckover, Gloucestershire

The two tenanted pubs are:

The Langford in Lower Langford, Somerset
The Old Station in Hallatrow, Bristol

Mark Crowther, CEO of Liberation Group said: "The addition of these eight high quality pubs to our portfolio further accelerates the growth of our rapidly expanding pub estate, strengthening our presence in our heartland around Bath and Bristol. These pubs are a perfect fit with our existing portfolio and will benefit from ownership by our fast growing, market leading regional brewery with its well-known brands. We welcome all those who work in those pubs and look forward to building a successful future together."

Scott Waddington, CEO of SA Brain said: "The sale of our English pubs is well timed given the outstanding prospects we have to further grow our brand and pubs business in Wales. The rich affection with which our brand is held has further solidified our conviction to pursue our pub agenda inside Wales. We will remain very proud of the period of ownership we have enjoyed with the pubs that are being acquired by Butcombe and believe the team, with their West Country heartland, are well placed to take these businesses forward."

The Liberation Group now has a 115-strong pub estate across South West England and the Channel Islands.

Butcombe Brewery reopens the Methuen Arms in Corsham with new look >>

Kings Head Inn, Bledington named Pub of the Year 2018 >>

Pub group Liberation sold for £118m >>

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