Brewery Fuller, Smith & Turner Buy Five Pubs as they Look to Cash-In on London 2012

Pub chain Fuller, Smith & Turner is going to spend £16 million ($25.5m) to buy five pubs, four in London, to exploit the opportunities the London 2012 Olympics will provide.

The brewer of London Pride recently lost out on a bid to buy the Capital Pub Company to rival Greene King, which paid £70 million ($111.5m) for 34 boozers around town.

Most pub chains think the Olympics will be very lucrative and are looking to expand in the capital.

Fuller is acquiring The Wellington at Waterloo, The Pavilion End and Bluu in the City, The Hand & Flower in Kensington Olympia and the Red Lion Hotel in Wendover, Bucks.

The seller is Marston’s, which is seeking cash to build new pubs in areas such as retail parks.

Fuller’s managing director Simon Emeny said: “These acquisitions are high turnover managed houses with a similar trading style to our own where we feel Fuller’s can add value. They emphasise our continued focus on London.”

The deal adds 58 bedrooms to the Fuller’s estate and takes the number of pubs it owns to 365 – one for every day of the year.

For City drinkers, The Pavilion End might be of most interest. It is close to Cannon Street station and has a beer garden regarded as one of the best in the Square Mile.