Brakspear hails success of Henley Ale Trail

January 16, 2013

With the Henley Ale Trail 2012 now over, Brakspear is hailing it a success. Close to 300 drinkers completed the trail, equating to nearly 3,000 pints of Brakspear ale drunk in the nine participating pubs in Henley.

Brakspear chief executive Tom Davies said, “The Ale Trail has grown in popularity since its launch in 2008, and is now a fixture for many Brakspear fans and others, mainly from outside Henley, who see it as a fun way of getting to know the pubs in the town.

“We broadened the Ale Trail marketing in 2012, using smartphone technology and social media to engage with younger customers.  Our tenants have told us they’ve seen more young drinkers on the Ale Trail this time, which is good news for pubs as it’s a way of building loyalty with people who will become their long-term customers.”

Bill Dobson is tenant at the Old Bell, the final pub on the trail, where customers with completed collector cards could claim their free pint of Brakspear and Ale Trail T-shirt. He said, “The Ale Trail definitely brings new customers through the doors. We saw quite a few groups of younger people, including a December surge of University students winding down over the last weeks of term.”

He added, “The Ale Trail is a fun, sociable event and customers clearly have a great time completing it. It’s good to be a part of something so popular.”

The Henley Ale Trail will be back for 2013 on Thursday 28 March, in time for the Easter long weekend, and will run through until the end of the year.

Pictured right:Tom Davies, Brakspear chief executive (centre) with regular Henley Ale Trailers Richard Bateman (left) and James Nixon (right), who have completed the five previous trails. Photo courtesy of Henley Standard.

Brakspear owns great pubs to rent, tenancies, leases, in Henley-on-Thames, Oxfordshire and other parts of the south-east and south Midlands.