South Shields pub breaks sales record with 10,000 drinks sold on Great North Run day
The New Crown Hotel, near to the finish line of the half marathon, had their busiest day ever last Saturday with a record 10,000 drinks sold.
A South Shields pub had a record day of sales during the Great North Run and sold over 10,000 drinks in total.
The New Crown Hotel, located on Mowbray Road, near to the finish line of the half marathon, had their busiest day ever last Saturday, September 13.
General Manager Stuart Parker, from Whitley Bay, only began working at the pub in July and although he was warned by fellow staff members it was going to be a busy day, he could not quite believe the sheer amount of people that turned up.
10,000 drinks sold
The 48-year-old said in total the pub sold over 10,000 drinks across the course of the day, with a whopping 7,000 of these being pints.
Stuart, who has worked in hospitality for over 30 years, said he has never seen a day like this before.
He said: “At one point I went down to the cellar and just watched the barrels empty right in front of me.”
The pub’s busiest hour was between 2pm and 3pm and they sold just over 1,000 pints in this time, which is over 16 pints per minute.
To prepare, the pub had 25 staff working and had nine staff members from other pubs head over to do a shift and help out.
There were four external bars, six food vans, a team from Redbull with a DJ and an additional DJ.
Pictures from the day show a very busy outside area filled with runners celebrating.
“Absolutely brilliant”
Stuart said: “It was an absolutely brilliant day.
“This was the biggest thing I have seen.
“The staff were unbelievable.
“I think everyone was really understanding as to how busy we were.”
He said that although many runners were celebrating with a well-earned drink, there was still a “family friendly” atmosphere.
Next year the pub plans to have the staff sponsored to do a half marathon, but in the building, as many of the staff completed the equivalent of 13.1 miles in steps.
There are also plans to add live music to the car park from earlier in the afternoon next year.