The pub trade in Dinbych has most definitely come down against proposals to convert a former church building to a J D Wetherspoon pub. They fear loss of trade and complain this will affect local suppliers.Rhuthun's due for a Wetherspoon's, too. There are whispers among the trade here but as yet nothing as orchestrated as in Dinbych/Denbigh, where it made front page in the Vale Advertiser* last week. When J D Wetherspoon announced its intentions for Rhuthun back in November, we called it the Tesco of the pub & grub trade. It's probably more akin to McDonald's. The point is that its different to others already in the town.
What Wetherspoon's should do is generate footfall. And given its potential location in Rhuthun—on St Peter's Square no less—it's likely to encourage more people into the town centre. Dinbych's Wetherspoon's is less central, at one extreme, by the roundabout opposite what was called the Pot Black (now Deja Vue).
The more you look at the Grade II* Castle Hotel (earmarked for Wetherspoon) the more you realise that its needs the sort of investment Wetherspoon's can bring. It's attractively and imposingly set on the Square and is highly visible to those climbing Clwyd Street. Yet, it's fading through lack of attention. It's a huge building to keep up and is one reason why the people behind The Picture House Restaurant and Wine Bar abandoned The Caste Hotel to Stephanie Booth.
And as a commenter stated in November, most Rhuthun pubs are already chain owned. Unlike in Dinbych, Rhuthun's site's already licensed. That commenter stated that some pubs may have to change to compete. Isn't that what pubs have always done?
* update 29/3/08 correction made following comment this was in the Vale, not Free Press
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Pubs