What you need

Skills, commitment, personality

To run a pub successfully, you need:

• Business skills
  You need to be able to handle issues like VAT and tax, know how to prepare a business plan and work out how to make a profit.
• Management skills
  You will be in charge of staff. Good managers get the best out of their people; bad ones struggle even to hold on to them.
• Capital
  To start running your own pub business you'll require access to at least £15,000, of which £10,000 should be your own.
• Commitment
  You should have an appetite for hard work, especially in the early days of your business.
• People skills
  Your customers will be your greatest assets. You need to look after them, even the awkward ones.

If you have all these, find the right pub and your life could be transformed.  
Advice

• DON’T sell your home to pay for your business. That way, if your plans don’t work out, you’ll still have the security of your home.
• DO go on a training course provided by one of the major pub companies. Even if you decide not to run a pub after the course, it will still be money well spent and you will end up with recognised, professional qualifications.
• DO sample the lifestyle: try working seven days and seven nights in a pub.

Ask yourself these questions

• Can I cope with the long hours involved in running a pub?
• Can my partner and I work together all the time?
• Will we be able to give our children the attention they need while running a pub?
• Can I manage my own finances as a self-employed publican?
• Do I have the knowledge and skills needed to run a pub?
• How do I react to intense stress and pressure?
• How do I feel about my partner getting unwelcome attentions from customers?
• Do I understand that running a pub is more than a job – it’s a way of life?
• Do I appreciate the health risks associated with the licensed trade (for example, stress and alcoholism)?

What if you don't have the required capital?

• Consider a management position at one of the managed pub operators if you have pub management experience.
• Explore going into partnership with a friend or members of your family. Parents have partially funded some of our pubs, for example.
• Save the required £10,000. This will be hard and take time, but it'll really demonstrate that you have the commitment to run your own pub.