For pubs across the UK, July is a critical trading period. With school holidays, summer tourists, major sporting fixtures, and cultural celebrations in full swing, it’s one of the most profitable months on the calendar – but also one of the riskiest.
At Capcon, we’ve spent decades supporting hospitality operators during high-pressure periods. Our stock audits, site visits and live data from the Nifty19 platform reveal a consistent truth: the same few mistakes cause the majority of margin erosion. The good news? They’re entirely avoidable.
Here’s how to get the wins and dodge the sins this July.
- Win: Strategic Stock Control
Effective stock management is the single biggest driver of profitability for pubs in peak season. Whether you’re pouring pints for the Lions tour or crafting G&Ts for garden revellers, tighter control = higher margin.
What we see:
- Over-ordering in anticipation of busy weekends, leading to product wastage or theft.
- Unrecorded stock transfers between bar areas or sites.
- Delivery errors not being flagged or challenged.
How to win:
- Use Nifty19 to track variances and review historical patterns.
- Conduct pre-weekend stock checks and adjust par levels based on data, not gut feel.
- Implement tighter sign-off processes for deliveries and internal transfers.
A Capcon client in London saw an 18% reduction in spirit wastage by simply aligning opening stock levels with actual sales projections. The shift was instant – and visible on the bottom line.
- Sin: Lax Right to Work Checks
Pubs lean heavily on temporary or agency staff in summer. That flexibility can come at a huge cost if checks aren’t handled properly.
The risk: Fines of £20,000+ per undocumented worker. More importantly, the reputational damage of non-compliance in the current climate can be severe.
Common issues we flag:
- Relying on verbal confirmation rather than documented checks.
- Poor record-keeping when new hires start on event days.
- Managers unaware of how to verify immigration status correctly.
The fix: Capcon provides a streamlined Right to Work audit and support service. We help ensure every team member is properly verified, even when working through third-party agencies.
- Win: Smarter Promotions = Cleaner Margins
Seasonal dates and sporting events offer fantastic opportunities for themed promotions. But all too often, promotional activity leads to untracked stock loss and inflated labour costs.
How to do it right:
- Define clear pricing and portion control rules before launching the promo.
- Ensure POS systems are updated to reflect new SKUs or price points.
- Build in waste monitoring for any new products or specials.
One pub group we work with tied every July promotion to a dedicated outlet in Nifty19. By separating promotional stock from core stock, they were able to measure ROI accurately and cut margin loss by 12%.
- Sin: Till Variance Blind Spots
Busy bars mean high till volumes. But during summer, Capcon site audits consistently reveal increased till variance. Often, these losses are written off as “part of the chaos” – but they don’t have to be.
Top variance drivers:
- Incorrect discounts or voids.
- Staff using shared log-ins.
- Poor handover procedures between shifts.
Solution:
- Set tighter permissions around comping and discounting.
- Train teams to follow a clear till handover process, especially on double shifts.
A Midlands-based pub reduced its cash variance by 70% after our audit identified gaps in discount permissions and implemented a log-in refresh.
- Win: Weekly Operational Reviews
High-performing pubs treat every week in July as its own trading period. Waiting until the end of the month to review performance is too late.
Best practice:
- Conduct a weekly performance huddle with managers and senior team.
- Review stock, sales, labour, and guest feedback.
- Use data to adjust strategy for upcoming weekends or events.
Capcon’s Operational Review service helps identify issues before they escalate. In July, that might mean reallocating stock for a local event, or adjusting staffing ahead of a Lions match screening.
- Sin: Wasted Labour on Event Days
The instinct to over-staff during high-volume events is understandable – but overstaffing can be just as damaging as being short-handed.
The pattern:
- Too many staff on early, too few late.
- Team members without defined roles, leading to inefficiencies.
- Spike in overtime costs for no gain in service delivery.
The remedy:
- Use forecasted sales and previous event data to build smarter rotas.
- Assign specific tasks for pre-, during- and post-event phases.
- Track labour vs turnover in real time.
Final Thoughts: Protect the Summer, Protect the Business
With margins under pressure, July is a vital opportunity for pubs to get ahead. But it requires more than just good weather and big events.
Success depends on data-led decision making, operational discipline, and proactive risk management.
At Capcon, we help pubs across the UK reduce wastage, tighten compliance, and unlock profit they didn’t know they were losing. If you want to finish July stronger than you started, let’s talk.
Get in touch to arrange a no-obligation site review or Nifty19 demo.
