A day in the life of… an Estates Manager (Marston’s)

The Pubs Code Adjudicator (PCA) team continues to undertake visits to pubs across England and Wales, to accompany pub company representatives in their roles. Two of the PCA team were invited by Estates Manager, Steve, to visit Cardiff to observe day-to-day activities in the role, talk directly to tied tenants, and understand how Marston’s representatives support them in relation to the Pubs Code.

In the midst of a storm, we ventured out to meet Steve who was accompanied by Wayne, an Estate Development Manager, to visit a variety of Marston’s pubs with their own characters, opportunities and challenges. Five years ago, Marston’s agreed a deal with Brains Brewery to operate their portfolio of 156 pubs in Wales, on a combination of leased and management contract arrangements. Marston’s has continued to operate these pubs under the Brains brand, including continuing to offer Brains beers in these pubs. We visited three of these pubs in Cardiff which are all on agreements covered by the Pubs Code. 

After a short amble, our first stop was at The Cambrian Tap which is a very characterful, popular, wet-led pub at the heart of the city centre. We were joined there by Rhys, the Area Manager, and new tenant, Ben, who was excited to be taking on the challenge, building on his current experience and success of another Marston’s pub in Cardiff. Ben was knowledgeable about the Code and the different agreement types, taking on a temporary Tenancy At Will agreement at the Cambrian Tap with no repairing liability for the pub. We heard that Marston’s have been working to improve the Business Development Review process and have implemented changes to make it more user friendly and ensure that meeting notes are shared automatically with the tenant once the document is completed.

Under the Pubs Code, a Business Development Manager (BDM) or any representative from the pub company acting in that capacity must provide tenants with a record of all discussions relating to rent negotiations, repairs and business planning with 14 days. Tenants then have 7 days to respond if they disagree with any aspect of the record (e.g. if they are inaccurate or incomplete). Our discussion highlighted how crucial the BDM’s relationship with tied tenants is to the overall success of a pub, particularly through the guidance and support they provide. In the 2025 PCA Tied Tenant Survey, 75% of Marston’s tenants reported being satisfied with their BDM relationship.

Our second stop was at The City Arms, a traditional pub known for sports, ideally located next to Principality Stadium with a broad range of beers. We could easily envision the pub brimming with excitement and anticipation on rugby match days with Gary, an extremely welcoming pub operator who had taken the pub from strength-to-strength. With a newly refurbished event space, with its own bar and entrance, the City Arms is also expanding its offering with private hire. 

Gary has also previously run a nearby pub and made the transition from a managed to retail agreement with Marston’s, feeding back that he enjoys the retail agreement model and that Marston’s have managed the premises well. From the 2025 Tied Tenant Survey we understand that most tenants understand the process for repairs when their pub company handle them, but they are split on satisfaction with how they are dealt with. On a retail agreement, Gary is only responsible for repairs in the private quarters of the premises. Keen to understand Gary’s experiences further, we discussed a recent example about how Marston’s dealt with a break-in at the pub. Gary logged the break-in through an online portal, and reported that Marston’s had responded quickly, resulting in a specially made window for the pub being fitted. Understandably, fixing the window promptly was very important to Gary to ensure positive first impressions to customers. After 20 years in the industry, working with Brains and Marston’s, Gary has made the decision to retire in January and explained that there will be a manual stock take and record of dilapidations taken on the final day before the pub is handed to a new operator.

Our final stop was the iconic Golden Cross pub, a prominent LGBTQ+ venue in a Grade 2 listed building, known for its live entertainment. Unfortunately, the tenant was unable to join us on the day, but as Marston’s are seeking a new operator for the pub, we took the opportunity to discuss requirements for new tenants and business planning support. Running a tied pub is a significant commitment and prospective tenants need to be properly informed to make the right business decisions.

Schedule 1 of the Pubs Code places obligations on the pub company when it is dealing with a prospective tied tenant including advising the prospective tenant to take independent professional advice before preparing their business plan. The pub company must be satisfied that the business plan is sustainable before the tenancy agreement can be signed. Wayne talked through his approach of meeting with prospective tenants in person and guiding them through all of the relevant documentation, including the Profit and Loss accounts, ensuring that they understand the information. In line with the Pubs Code, Steve directs any prospective tenants who do not have prior experience to complete pubs entry training, which raises awareness of the matters involved in operating a pub and entering into a tied agreement.

We wish to thank Steve, Wayne and Rhys for their organisation and hospitality, as well as the pub operators who made time to be available and speak openly with us. We were struck by the passion and drive of the pub operators who were committed to running a successful business and build relationships with their community. Overall, it was a very wet but informative and worthwhile day in the Welsh capital.