CAMBRIDGESHIRE PUBLICAN CELEBRATES COMPETITION WIN WITH EAZLE® TOOLS

HEINEKEN UK has shared details of the winner of its recent eazle® tools competition, which saw publican Charlotte Wright, of The Admiral in Over, Cambridgeshire, score Grandstand tickets to the British Grand Prix weekend. 

Charlotte was one of many respondents who entered the competition, which asked operators to share the challenges currently facing their businesses, and suggest future additions to eazle ® tools that would help them the most. The brewer and pub operator developed the new digital platform, eazle® tools, earlier this year, which has been designed by publicans, for publicans.

“It was an incredible experience to win. My parents love to watch the Grand Prix on TV, so I decided to gift them the tickets,” Charlotte smiled. “It was such a great experience for them – a real once in a lifetime moment that I’m glad I could share”. 

Earlier this summer, HEINEKEN UK launched its new eazle® tools digital offering, which encompasses three different features: 

• A marketing calendar, which offers expert advice, prompts to improve footfall and a 6-week event planning checklist for teams 
• A GP calculator, to help operators get the right value for their ranges and services and to help improve profitability
• Staff resourcing advice, to help publicans manage teams with confidence  

The new bank of tools serves as a one-stop shop for all those who work in the On-Trade, assisting them in these areas so they can continue to focus on creating memorable experiences for their customers on a daily basis.

The Admiral pub in Over, Cambridgeshire, had been closed for three years before Charlotte took over in 2024. “It’s just us in the village, so it was a really big thing for the local community for us to bring it back”, Charlotte explained. “It has been a real journey so far, and we had a really great first summer last year”. 

As with many operators, Charlotte has embraced how consumers’ expectations have changed over the past few years, evolving The Admiral’s offering to meet those needs. Keen to continue driving interest and engagement in venue, the team have revamped their offering – introducing cocktails, a new menu, and updating the garden – to ensure everyone who walks through the doors are offered a unique and memorable experience.  

“Customers’ lives have changed so much in recent years, especially since Covid, and their perception of pubs has evolved – which in itself presents a challenge”, Charlotte explains. “Historically, you would have locals that would come in every single night, and the way people go out seems to have changed quite a lot”. 

A trend emerging across the On-Trade, Charlotte has seen evidence that her customers want more out of their sessions than just sitting down for a drink in their local pub – something which eazle® tools has been able to support The Admiral with.

“We know that we need to move with the times and continue to identify where the trends are,” Charlotte continues. “We do feel that this has really opened doors though – and through creative thinking we have adapted our offering to give our customers a really special experience.”

Charlotte credits eazle® tools with helping to keep her business booming. “Eazle® tools is a really useful platform for us. We use it regularly and the new features have really improved things”, she explained.  She  has also found the marketing calendar especially helpful; “It’s so useful to know the events that are coming up. Prior to that, I was sat on my phone, scrolling to find out what events were upcoming and if we wanted to do anything for them, so, now it’s all in one place, it’s really helpful”. Charlotte has also found HEINEKEN UK’s POS Direct site useful, allowing the team to easily mock up assets for activities with templates that she can tailor to her pub.

“The biggest challenge we face is getting people through the door”, Charlotte finishes by saying. “What we focus on regularly is events and planning different experiences for people”. A shared experience for many pub operators, eazle®tools will continue to support publicans across the network, helping them to drive footfall, boost sales and overall continue to benefit our beloved pub sector. 

For more information about how eazle® tools can help your pub, visit https://tools.eazle.co.uk