10 business lessons I learnt running a chain of successful pubs in London
David Bruce OBE, is the founder of Bruce’s Brewery and the Firkin pubs and author of ‘The Firkin Saga: Brewing up entrepreneurial adventures and pioneering tales with the Prince of Ales’. These are the Business lessons he has learned.
Let me start with a confession: I still don’t have my maths O-level. Failed it five times, actually. Unsurprisingly, I didn’t get into university. By conventional measures, I was a complete academic disaster.
Yet, between 1979 and 1988, I built 12 successful pubs across London, each brewing its own beer in an era when the big breweries had convinced everyone this was impossible. After just nine years, I sold my pub chain for £6.6 million cash, just before my 40th birthday.
The point isn’t to boast – well, maybe a little – but to prove that academic failure doesn’t doom you to entrepreneurial failure. In fact, sometimes it’s exactly what you need to develop the bloody-minded determination that separates successful entrepreneurs from everyone else.
But you need more than just determination and I learned some hard-won lessons along the way. Here are the 10 that mattered most.
Before you start, learn a trade first
When I realised university wasn’t happening, I had to choose between apprenticeships at Courage brewery or Shell oil. I chose brewing because it sounded much more fun with its pubs and breweries than petrol stations and oil refineries – best career decision I ever made.
That two-year training program gave me everything I needed: whisky blending, wine importing, accountancy, pub management, and most importantly, genuine empathy with employees. I understood every aspect of the business because I’d done every job myself.
The lesson: Don’t let academic failure stop you, but do get proper training and experience in your chosen field.
Put it into practice: Before you leap into entrepreneurship, spend at least five years learning your industry inside-out. Work for someone else, understand the problems, spot the gaps. You can’t disrupt an industry you don’t understand.
1) follow your instincts… even when everyone says no
When I first wrote up my business plan, I managed to get it in front of the top City analyst for brewing and pubs to review. He sent it back with a note scrawled across the front page: “This project has absolutely no chance of succeeding and I suggest you abandon it immediately.”
But I didn’t. I found a derelict pub in a dodgy part of town and went to work. It was all an instinct that the idea would work. And it did. Not only that, but it kept working, against all odds.
In fact, every pub I took on was a failed big brewers’ pub. Perhaps it was a bit arrogant to assume I could do better where others had failed, but sometimes arrogance is exactly what you need.
At every single step, someone tried to stop me. Licensing authorities, health inspectors, big brewers, local councils – they all had reasons why it wouldn’t work. The bureaucracy was relentless, but I’d learned something crucial: if you’re doing something genuinely new, resistance is inevitable.
The lesson: Be brave, ambitious, and never give up – especially when the experts tell you it’s impossible.
Put it into practice: Develop thick skin early. Expect resistance, especially from established players who benefit from the status quo. Stay focused on your vision and never give up. If everyone’s telling you it won’t work, you might be onto something big.
2) Seize every opportunity (don’t take no for an answer)
After my first pub, the Goose & Firkin, took off, opportunities started appearing everywhere. Terry Jones from Monty Python even got in touch to ask if I’d like to develop Denmark Hill railway station. I went for every opportunity, even when the odds seemed impossible.
I didn’t get every opportunity I chased, but I learned that persistence pays off. “Don’t take no for an answer” became my motto. Sometimes the person saying no today might say yes tomorrow, or know someone who will.
The lesson: Once you have early success, more opportunities present themselves – go for every one.
Put it into practice: Build momentum from early successes. Say yes to opportunities that stretch you. The worst that can happen is you learn something valuable. The best that can happen is you stumble onto your next breakthrough.
3) You don’t need your own money
I started my business while I was on the dole with absolutely no money. Everything was borrowed – some from friends, bank loans, free trade agreements with brewers, and even a second mortgage. I pieced together funding from multiple sources because no single lender would back the full amount.
The beauty of having no money is that it forces creativity. Since you can’t solve your problems by throwing cash at them, you find better solutions. Some of my best innovations came from having no budget. From the church pews I found in junk shops to the honky-tonk piano ─ all these ramshackle items became part of the charm that developed into the Firkin brand.
The lesson: Rich parents or personal wealth aren’t prerequisites for entrepreneurship.
Put it into practice: Stop waiting for the perfect funding. Start with what you can access now. Bootstrap, borrow, barter – use other people’s money to prove your concept works. Once you have traction, bigger funding becomes much easier to secure.
4) Hang onto your equity
I’d rather have debt than lots of shareholders. Debt is expensive but temporary; equity is forever. When I sold the Firkin chain, I still owned 90% of the business. That’s why a £6.6 million sale actually put about £3 million in my pocket after paying off all my debts and £1.3m in tax but I had always kept control of my company.
Early on, various investors wanted to buy stakes in the business, often for ridiculously low amounts. I turned them all down, preferring to borrow money at high interest rates rather than sell equity cheaply.
The lesson: Equity is where the real value lies – guard it jealously.
Put it into practice: Only sell equity when you absolutely must, and never sell it cheap. Early investors are betting on your potential failure – prove them wrong by keeping the upside for yourself.
5) Control the cash (and hire people better than you)
By 1982, every pub was packed, and we had thousands of loyal customers. Yet we were on the verge of going bust (according to my accountants). I was so focused on creating great pubs that I’d completely ignored the finances. High sales don’t automatically mean profit – a lesson that nearly cost me everything.
I tried to do everything myself to save money, but when it came to the finances, I didn’t have the skills. It was only when my lawyers questioned the numbers that I spoke to an accountant. And it was only when the accountants at Touche Ross pointed out that we were running out of money that I realised I needed a proper finance director and real financial controls.
Having failed maths O-level five times, I clearly wasn’t the ideal candidate for managing the numbers. So, I found someone who was, we gained control of our cashflow, and turned a nearly bankrupt business into a thriving empire.
The lesson: Busy doesn’t mean guaranteed profit – you need proper financial controls.
Put it into practice: Identify your weaknesses early and hire accordingly. Your passion for the product won’t save you if you can’t personally produce the numbers. Hire people who love the things you hate and listen to them.
6) Delegate and build culture early
I put my stamp on the business from the very beginning. While each pub had its own character, they all shared the same irreverent, fun-loving culture. I built a team of loyal people who could handle every aspect of the business, from brewing to pub management to bookkeeping. We paid good wages and looked after our staff so they’d stick around, helping to keep a consistent culture going.
Entrepreneurs, by our very nature, are wild cards. We need focusing. That’s where a good network can come in handy. I surrounded myself with professional advisors who kept me on the straight and narrow while letting me maintain the anarchic spirit that made the Firkins special.
The lesson: Create your culture from day one and hold on to your best people. They contribute to your brand culture and keep you focused.
Put it into practice: Invest in people and systems early, even when money’s tight. The culture you create in the first year will determine whether you can scale successfully. Build your team like your business depends on it – because it does.
7) Look after yourself
Another confession: I actually fell asleep behind the wheel at traffic lights once because I was brewing at 4am every day while running multiple pubs. I’d become a complete workaholic, and it was dangerous – literally. You can’t make good decisions when you’re exhausted.
I had to learn to take holidays, look after my family, and find balance. Running became my stress relief, and we bought a cottage in Wales where I could escape the madness and think clearly about the business.
The lesson: Balance prevents burnout and bad decisions.
Put it into practice: Build sustainability into your routine from day one. Schedule downtime like you schedule meetings. Your business needs you sharp, not burnt out.
8) Plan your exit strategy
I always had the phrase “flog it or float it” in the back of my mind ─ sell the business or float it on the stock exchange. But it’s all about timing. You don’t want to hold on for too long and let the spark die out.
I realised I wanted off the merry-go-round one morning when I was stuck in M4 traffic, contemplating another week of meetings with lawyers and union officials.
I could see changes coming to the industry – big brewers were about to be forced by the government to sell thousands of their tied houses, creating chaos in the sector. And I was getting tired of it all. It stopped being as much fun and had become more about meetings and bureaucracy. It was time to flog it or float it.
The lesson: The best time to sell is when you’re still successful, not when you’re struggling – quit while you’re ahead.
Put it into practice: Set exit criteria before you need them. What would make you want to sell? What would you need to see to know it’s time? Keep watching industry trends and be ready to act when the moment’s right.
9) Inspire and educate others
Even while building the business, I was speaking to MBA students and sharing what I’d learned. Later, I wrote books and started a charitable trust – though I had to fight the charity commission’s bureaucracy just like I’d fought licensing authorities. But it was important to me to give back, whether through sharing my knowledge and experience or finding ways to use some of my hard-earned money for public good.
Sharing knowledge builds your reputation, expands your network, and often leads to unexpected opportunities. Teaching others also forces you to clarify your own thinking.
The lesson: Give back to the community and industry.
Put it into practice: Start sharing your knowledge early. Write blog posts, speak at events, mentor other entrepreneurs. The reputation you build will pay dividends in ways you can’t imagine.
10) Have fun (be a rebel)
I was a rebel and a maverick, and that attracted attention. We did things differently – the awful puns, the irreverent atmosphere, what one industry director called our “professional standard of amateurism.” We savoured the special moments and had genuine fun building something unique.
If you’re not enjoying the journey, check the chemistry. Maybe it’s the wrong business, wrong partners, or wrong approach. Life’s too short to spend it building something you hate.
The lesson: If you hate it, something’s probably wrong.
Put it into practice: Maintain your enthusiasm and entrepreneurial spirit. Do things differently, not because different is better, but because authentic is better. If you’re having fun, it shows – and customers respond to genuine enthusiasm.
The thread that connects everything
Looking back, these lessons all connect to a central truth: entrepreneurship isn’t about having the perfect plan or the best credentials. It’s about spotting opportunities, having the courage to act, and adapting as you learn.
I failed maths five times but built a business that required understanding complex finances. I had no money but created a company worth millions. I was told it would never work, but it worked spectacularly.
The difference wasn’t my intelligence or grand vision – it was persistence, the willingness to learn from others, and the bloody-minded determination to prove the experts wrong.
Whether you’re opening pubs or building the next tech unicorn, these principles remain constant. Start with what you have, not what you think you need. Surround yourself with people smarter than you. Be persistent and fight the bureaucracy. And above all, have some fun along the way.
As I always say: if you’re going to fail, at least fail doing something interesting. But if you follow these lessons, you might just succeed spectacularly instead.
Author: David Bruce OBE has enjoyed an extraordinary career as both an international entrepreneur and a philanthropist. After his early days in the world of beer at Courage and Theakston breweries, David struck out on his own, founding the eponymous Bruce’s Brewery and the first of its Firkin pubs in 1979. Following their sale in 1988, David not only co-founded and invested in several craft breweries across the globe, but also eleven new pub companies in the UK, as well as developing the Slug & Lettuce chain of bars.
He also created The Bruce Trust and The Bruce Foundation to provide respectively canal and motorhome holidays for disabled, disadvantaged, or elderly. David was awarded an OBE in 2021 for his services to charity. His memoir, ‘The Firkin Saga: Brewing up entrepreneurial adventures and pioneering tales with the Prince of Ales’ is available from Amazon and all good bookshops.
