Craft Union Pub Company is celebrating seven years of trading with the investment and reopening of its very first pub, The Market Tavern in Hanley.

Formed in April 2015, The Market Tavern in Hanley was Craft Union’s original site. Within the first year the company had grown to an estate of 23 pubs and today Craft Union operate some 440+ pubs across the country. It has also seen award success, crowned Community Pub Operator of the Year at the Publican Awards in 2020 and 2022, it remains the current title holder of this award.

The unique Craft Union business model gives individual Operators the freedom to run their pub as their own business with the support and backing of the Company. These partnerships enable Operators to immerse themselves in their communities and have resulted in an incredible retention rate at 86% with Operator turnover currently at an all-time low.

Nick Andrews, Managing Director at Stonegate Group, said: “Community is at the heart of everything we do in Craft Union and the success of the past seven years is down to our Operators, our local heroes, who serve their individual communities tirelessly and with such incredible dedication. We believe there are many benefits and opportunities within our unique operating model. Our Operator earning potential along with additional incentives and benefits, together with a fantastic nationwide portfolio of sites, first class support from the largest Pub Company [Stonegate Group] and one of the most dedicated Operations Support teams in the industry, makes Craft Union poised as the future partner of choice.”

This anniversary of Craft Union is being marked by the six-figure investment of its inaugural site, The Market Tavern in Hanley. A treasure in the Craft Union estate, the pub embodies the company ethos – a fantastic community wet-led pub, known locally as serving great drinks and a fantastic place to watch sport. This re-investment demonstrates Craft Union’s commitment to continuous improvement of its estate.

The pub is celebrating its official reopening today [Friday 19 August] with a jam-packed 90’s-themed weekend, with live music and DJs.

Simon Calvert and Natalie Bamford who recently joined the Craft Union family as Operators of The Market Tavern at this pivotal point in the pub’s history said: “We are delighted to be part of the Craft Union family and proud to be a part of The Market Tavern’s next chapter. The investment has given our fantastic pub a new lease of life and I cannot wait to lead this business to future success. Running a Craft Union pub, you are really in charge of your own destiny, that is the beauty of their operating partnerships. The help and encouragement we have received from all the support teams at Stonegate has been worlds apart from what we have experienced before. I cannot wait to see what the future holds for us at The Market Tavern.”

Craft Union continues to expand and enhance its estate and partner packages, most recently launching a dedicated training programme, Elevation, for its regional managers. Going forward Craft Union is focussed on nurturing and recruiting the very best talent.

Nick Andrews concluded: “We have exciting years ahead of us, with ambitious and opportunistic plans to ensure our business partners see continuous success. Our mission is to cement our name as a partner of choice, enhancing our Operator offer with industry leading packages, whilst attracting new talent from various backgrounds and different industries.”