‘Industry is on its knees’ – Sadness as Hull community pub forced to close

A Hull landlord who was determined to fight to save his city centre pub has decided to call it a day at the end of this month, saying the industry is “on its knees”.

Ian Ibbetson, who took over the running of The New Clarence, in Charles Street, in the middle of the pandemic, said: “When I took the pub on in September 2020 I knew it was a massive gamble. What none of us foresaw was what has happened since.

“It’s one of those things when you are in business, you win some, you lose some. There is no point in investing in a new hospitality venue at the moment, I don’t think.”

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The New Clarence has been put on the market by Admiral Taverns and agents in the sale, Everard Cole Ltd, of Nottingham, have invited offers in the region of £250,000 for the pub. It is described as a “substantial” three-storey corner property with an open-plan bar and commercial kitchen a first-floor function room and with “good-sized” three-bedroom living accommodation.

Ian, whose Chilli Devil’s business was first launched in 2009 and had a base in Manor Street, Hull, before he transferred it to The New Clarence, said: “I am disappointed that things here haven’t worked out. I have got options going forward, including one in the city centre, but I am going to try to take a break for a while – I haven’t had a proper holiday since 2018.”

While doing particularly well with the pub’s function room, offering a space for everything from comedy nights to choir practices and “all sorts of bits and pieces”, Ian said things had just not gone well enough and he was sad for his regulars.

“It has been touching in a way, the number of people who have already come up and said how disappointed they are at it not working. Some have even referred to the pub as their safe space – they have come in with their own problems and we did our best to take care of them – it’s all part of what being a community pub is about.”

Ian put out a message on social media about his last trading day being Friday, June 30. It said: “Needless to say, there will be some serious partying going on that night.”

His notice said: “I’ve no intention of opening another hospitality business for the time being. Pretty much the whole industry is on its knees, with rising costs, staff shortages and falling custom because of the whole cost of living thing.

“It’s not a good time to be opening a new venture. I’ve got accommodation sorted, and I’m confident I can get a well-paid job.”

He thanked all those who had supported Chilli Devil’s bar since it first opened back in 2017. “There has been much water under the bridge since then… I’ve enjoyed it, I’ve learned from it, and I’m far from tired of it.”

Speaking to Hull Live a few months after taking on the management of The New Clarence, where he added his chilli-infused world food into the mix of real ale, live music and more, Ian said: “I’ve just done up the beer garden but I have all sorts of ideas for what we can do when we can get customers back in.

“I think pubs will have to think outside the box a little, they’ll have to give people other reasons to come.” He also said: “You have to be optimistic in business.”

The Hull and East Yorkshire branch of CAMRA, the Campaign for Real Ale, tweeted: “We are very sad to hear that the New Clarence will be closing. These are tough times for all our pubs. We wish Ian all the very best for whatever the future holds.”

The New Clarence will continue to open on Fridays and Mondays, from 5.30pm, and all day on Saturdays and Sundays, until June 30. A talk about Hull parks and gardens, by Paul Schofield will still be going ahead on Sunday, June 11, at 7pm, and the final “Ten of the Best” gig will be on Sunday, June 18.

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