Bury St Edmunds brewing giant Greene King is set to open 30 new pubs across the UK in 2026 as it marks a major milestone.
The brewer recently celebrated the launch of its 100th franchise venue.
In 2025, it opened 30 new franchise pubs, including in Scotland, with The Tarbet in Edinburgh being its first franchise the country after a £285,000 refurbishment.
Greene King has marked 100 franchise pubs
As part of its next wave, Greene King will expand into Wales and the Southwest of England for the first time.
Penelope Bruce, Pub Partners franchise operations director, said the company was over the moon to have hit the ‘magic number’ of 100 franchise pubs.
“Just over four years on from launching our very first Hive Pub, our franchise offer continues to grow,” she said.
“After expanding into Scotland for the first time, we have plans to launch in Wales in 2026 as we open 30 more franchise pubs.
“We continue to see lots of interest in our pub franchise agreements from experienced pub managers looking to take the step up and run their own pub business and are actively seeking applicants to run the pubs in our pipeline.”
Greene King’s expansion will see its Pub Partners team grow, which would involve two new business development managers being hired.
New franchise investments include Millwrights in Aylesbury, The Freemasons Arms in Wigan and The Flag Inn in Egerton.
According to Greene King, pub costs for a franchisee can be as little as £3,000, which would cover agreement fees, induction, and on-site training. Earnings are based on food and drink sales.
The company continues to recruit pub managers and operators to drive its expansion plans.
Dan Robinson, Greene King Pub Partners managing director, said: “We are delighted with the ongoing growth of our franchise business, which continues to complement our very successful leased and tenanted pub business.”
