Work is underway on a £325,000 refurbishment of The Princess, 126 Smithycroft Rd, Riddrie in Glasgow, and it’s scheduled to open early October. It’s a joint investment between Star Pubs & Bars and mother and daughter team, Adrienne Greenaway and Victoria Asghar, who have run the pub for nearly 20 years.
The refurbishment is both external and internal including sone structural changes and responsible for the design were Gill Morris and Alan Baxter of the Davidson Baxter Partnership.
Alan told DRAM, “The toilets took up the main elevation of the building so we’ve moved them to the back of the building and installed front windows to give it more kerb appeal and encourage passing trade in what is a busy wee street with a cluster of shops nearby. The signage makes the building look far more inviting, plus Adrienne and Victoria are going to deck the 80-capacity beer garden so we’ve added a new access door to it from the bar. The garden will also have lots of planting plus covered sections and heating for year-round use.”
He continued, “Inside, there are two areas, a traditional bar, and a lounge bar area that doubles as a function suite separated by a subdivision screen, and the space has been enhanced by a fresh and contemporary colour scheme in.”
Lessee Victoria Asghar added, “We’ve been closed since lockdown and The Princess is a hub of the community and regulars are missing it terribly. We want to give Riddrie a really great local, so hopefully, people will feel it’s worth the wait. We’ll be able to properly cater to women, families, and senior citizens for the first time.”
She continued, “ I have to say that for an East End local in Glasgow, it’s going to look absolutely amazing. The colour scheme is a mixture of greens and blues and the seating is a mixture of booths and chairs and tables so we can keep people apart for social distancing and I know that it’s been designed with Covid-19 in mind. There is also a mixture of leather and fabric upholstery. The regulars are so excited about the reopening with a good quality offering a value for money.”
Said Lawson Mountstevens, managing director of Star Pubs & Bars, added, “We’re firm believers in the future of community locals. In challenging times such as these, they’re even more important to the residents they serve. However, they need to keep pace with pubgoers’ changing expectations. These refurbishments will reward regulars for their loyalty and attract the new customers’ pubs need to thrive for the long term.
“This investment also underlines the benefits of the tied pubs model for licensees. It comes at a time when the lower risk and higher support of the tied model in Scotland is in danger of being jeopardised by The Tied Pubs Bill now being considered by the Scottish Parliament.”