YRCCC Meeting at Marsden Conservative Club, 12th September 2007
We had some idea that the choice of location for this meeting at Marsden which is at the western extremity of our region (and almost in the old Lancashire county but not quite - it is very definitely in West Yorkshire) might put off some of our more regular visitors from the Bradford and Leeds areas, but hoped that it might present a better opportunity for some of the clubs in the Huddersfield and Halifax areas to more easily attend one of our meetings. This was not to be, unfortunately, and the only other Huddersfield Club represented was Paddock. Surprisingly clubs from as far afield as Pontefract, Cullingworth, and Cross Hills (between Keighley and Skipton) did manage to send representatives who travelled much greater distances than delegates from the majority of clubs in the Huddersfield, Bradford, Halifax, Wakefield and Leeds would have had to.
Marsden Club
Marsden is a very small industrial town in a very picturesque location. The Yorkshire end of the Standedge canal tunnel (the highest, deepest and longest canal tunnel in the UK) is within a couple of hundred yards of the club which plays a very important part in the social life of the town being host to a number of Arts festivals (including Jazz and Amateur Operatics amongst other events), and is a very pleasant place to visit between Spring and early Autumn. The club, itself, is managing to thrive in the current hostile economic climate for clubs in general. I would strongly recommend using your Inter-Affiliation card to pay a visit to the club.
Theme
The theme of the meeting was about going back to the basics of good club management, so that clubs can avoid financial difficulties through good housekeeping, searching out better deals and getting support from your brewery suppliers, and taking necessary preventative/precautionary measures.
InBev
Many clubs are still missing out on getting the best discounts from their brewery suppliers. Bob Oxter and Alex Higgins from InBev (formerly known as InterBrew) gave a presentation on their products which include Boddingtons Bitter, Bass Red Triangle, Beck’s Lager, and Stella Artois (amongst many others). InBev is an ACC approved supplier and adopt an open pricing policy which is also very competitive with other suppliers. They are willing to put their products on your bar without entailing any commitment or charges for installation. You can use their quotable prices in negotiating better deals with other suppliers to your advantage. Not only that, but the product range is quite extensive and you can obtain the standard bottled beers, soft drinks, wines and spirits at competitive prices (wines & spirits are only supplied in cases of 6 or 12 per product – no mixed cases). The reps will also visit regularly to meet you bar committees to discuss ways in which they can support your club with special promotions and work out what type of activities which will suit your club – rather than the usual pattern where the marketing designed to meet the trends of the younger disco club market is pushed upon you regardless of the different requirements of your own members. InBev will support you with branded glasses, bar towels, and T-shirts, etc – some items can be useful as supplementary prizes in draws. You should also not neglect to get in touch with your Scottish & Newcastle rep – you might have lost your visiting rep, but the Telephone Account Manager for your club (not the standard Sales ordering point) can discuss promotions with your club – you can make appointments for the TAM to come out and visit the club in person, so don’t neglect that opportunity. Special events such as “Tasting Nights” or other events sponsored by suppliers can enliven a dull and monotonous program which is no longer attracting existing or new members into the club.
Stock-Taking
Tony Leach from D B Walker & Sons, stocktakers, gave a presentation on the benefits of rigorous stock-taking and checking procedures that help to prevent loss through theft and fraud. The use of information from computerised tills identifies discrepancies between the amount of stock consumed and actual sales deterring open till drawer fraud and also inaccurate entries due to poor arithmetic skills. The use of varied staff from the stocktakers prevents collusion between the steward and an individual stocktaker, and the presentation of comprehensive reports which are only provided direct to the nominated Committee representative help prevent an untrustworthy steward from covering his tracks with the help of the financial information provided when the reports are given directly to such a steward. Clubs are also warned to make regular checks on floats held by the steward and also that monies are banked on the appointed day and appear on the bank balances of the club’s accounts. Clubs that don’t hire professional stocktakers, or don’t use stocktakers from a large well run organisation, run a heavy risk of losses due to fraud. D B Walker & Sons Ltd are the ACC approved stocktakers.
Beer Line Cleaning & Flow Measurement
Alistair McInnes of Centriflow Services Ltd (www.beerengines.com) gave a short presentation on some of his products. He provides flow meters for bar lines which accurately measure quantities delivered through beer lines and can be of benefit as a deterrent and check on quantities dispensed and then checked against sales recorded on tills and stock movements on stocktaking reports. They can also accurately determine the amounts wasted during pipe cleaning to determine appropriate allowances. Alistair also has two other products: a system for automatically dispensing the pipe cleaning fluid into beer lines which avoids many of the risks associated with handling caustic fluids (Health & Safety at Work), and also deliver it efficiently. Another product is a sonic non-intrusive attachment to beer lines which prevents yeast build-up and can extend the period between pipe-cleaning from 1 week to 3 weeks. This would pay for itself within a year and produce significant savings in costs after that. Well worth having a look at. Ring Alistair on 07778 919495 or 01535 637436.
Other news
Some clubs are reporting little or confusing help and advice from Local Authorities on planning permissions required for smoking canopies and similar amenities. Contact the ACC or us directly for advice if you are getting the run around. This Labour Government seems determined to make survival as difficult as possible for clubs. Following the ban on Lottery machines in clubs with prizes greater than £500, the Treasury has decided to grab possible lost revenue by requiring License fees to be paid similar to Gambling machines (expected to be about £2000 annually!).
Next meeting
will be at East Ardsley Conservative Club at 8pm on the 5th December 2007.