The Students' Union bars have been a staple of the student community for decades, with Phineas opening in 1993, however a recent decrease in footfall has put the bar’s survival into question.
One of the worst kept secrets within the Students’ Union is that of the four bars — The Huntley, Mullys, Phineas, and The Institute — three are currently running deficits.
Rather than making a concerted effort to draw in boozy students, the Union’s solution has been to reduce working hours of bar staff in a move to protect financial losses.
The Cheese Grater spoke to a bar staff member who works at The Huntley, Mullys, and Phineas, which we will appropriately abbreviate as HMP. They raised concerns that the bars are suffering from complacency.
Cuts to staff hours
One of the key concerns raised by the bar staff member was that, rather than trying to draw customers in, the bars are in a state of managed decline with shifts being “cut to protect financial losses, rather than direct action to try and improve footfall and profitability of the bars.”
The Cheese Grater can reveal that staff members in HMP, who are all students, have had their hours cut by one hour on regular shifts and there has been a reduction in staff members on shift.
This raises concerns for the students who work at the bars, who may be reliant on regular shifts to pay rent alongside other commitments.
The staff member suggested that hours being cut were a direct result of the bars suffering losses, saying, “it was very clear in October/November even when shifts began to be cut.”
They further suggested that the lack of customers was also a reason for cuts, saying, “I have never before seen people sent home so early — there is only so many times you can clean something or wipe a surface before you are getting paid to do effectively nothing.”
Consistency is key
Many of the issues the Union bars currently face are a direct result of a drop off in customers over the years and a lack of a consistent clientele.
The bar staff member claimed that the drop off after freshers week was much more dramatic than in previous years where turnout had tended to be consistent over term one.
This drop off in attendance can be attributed in part to wider issues in society such the cost of living crisis and rising prices.
While bar prices remain comparatively low to your average London bar, they have consistently risen — in 2021, you could buy a pint in Phineas for £2.40, now the cheapest pint will set you back £3.90.
It is plausible that rather than the price being an issue, it’s the venue itself, with the bar staff member arguing that it is hard to attract punters to Phineas given its location on the third floor of 25 Gordon Street.
The staff member said, “The student bar simply isn’t good enough anymore. Yes, the offers are still great value but there’s competition at every turn, from The Rocket and other establishments, that maybe feel ‘cooler’ to pre-drink at for sports night.”
“Out of ideas”
The bar staff member suggested that there was a lack of events drawing students to the bars, saying, “more ‘events’ would be key, rather than reliance on the low prices to draw people in.”
They were quick to praise the quiz night, which is now hosted in Mully’s on a Monday night — “Quiz night always seems to be busy, possibly because it is more of an ‘event’ rather than sitting and drinking, [it] is advertised well and has a committed group of followers week in, week out.”
Perhaps, a more problematic addition this year was the alcohol free games night on Monday nights in Phineas. While it’s positive that more non-drinking socials are available to students, holding them in a bar seems to undercut how the establishment makes its profits — alcohol sales. Where previously Phineas would be rammed on a Monday night, it is now a shell of its former self, according to the bar staff member.
The bar staff member asserted that revenue from the non-alcoholic games night has been as low as £160 for the entire night though The Cheese Grater cannot verify this claim.
Another regular feature of the events calendar, “Jazz Night” has also seen a drop off in interest, with the bar staff member saying, “I remember going past all the time and there being a massive queue for Phineas in particular, that is almost never the case now.”
Looking towards the future, the bar staff member was cautiously optimistic saying, “my hope is that term two offers a chance for more events, in particular there appears to be opportunity within the UCL200 celebrations.”
They further added “No one wants the bars to fail — and the staff work hard to ensure they do not, but right now everyone seems a bit out of ideas.”
It is clear that the Union bar staff are enthusiastic to see their bars thrive, but without support and action from the Union to bring customers back, the future of the bars is at stake.
A Students’ Union spokesperson said:
“Our four bars are an important part of student life at UCL and have a unique social enterprise ethos, with every penny of profit put straight back into the student community.
“Since returning from the pandemic, we’ve seen a noticeable trend away from alcohol consumption within the demographic groups most likely to visit Phineas, Huntley and Mullys. This trend is affecting all licensed trade in the UK, and our bars are no exception, with tougher competition for fewer customers.
“Performance across our portfolio of commercial services remains strong, however, and they are on track to deliver another surplus this year that will be reinvested into providing services for students including advice, clubs and societies, and representation.”