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“ We own and operate 21 venues across Scotland and in addition, we also have our own brewery, Cold Town Beer,” Louise begins, introducing the company.“ Nic Wood started Signature Pubs in 2003. There’ s not a job in hospitality that he hasn’ t done. He’ s worked his way up to a leadership position and fell in love with the industry, so much so that he decided to start his own company. He had around three or four bars when I joined in 2013, but Nic always had the desire to expand. We’ re not chasing a number; we look at all opportunities and see where we could add value.”
Premium experience
From its very first venue to its latest, each of Signature’ s sites offers the full package for the perfect destination venue. The company is constantly reinvesting in its venues to maintain their sparkle. For instance, Signature recently completed a refurbishment of its Rutland Hotel venue- a boutique collection of rooms, apartments, bars, and eateries with an Edwardian feel. Signature-owned since 2007, the stylish establishment attracts many guests from the across the world – both domestic and international tourists. To accommodate the increased demand, the Rutland Hotel underwent a makeover – a significant investment of over £ 1.2 million. The company bought an additional three townhouses between 2015 and 2023 to complement its existing 12 hotel rooms, then premiumized each room to further enhance Rutland’ s luxurious ambience. From a fully equipped gym to top-range GHD hairdryers and beautiful Scottish fine soaps, the Rutland Hotel provides the ultimate guest experience to make its patrons feel like royalty.
Whilst each of its venues boasts its own strong, individual identity, one thing remains consistent across Signature: its extraordinary commitment to customer experience. Each of Signature’ s venues are standalone, allowing each to shine in its own unique way.
“ Signature is mainly a company trading entity. We’ re not like a managed pub estate; we’ re the exact antithesis of that. Our pubs are known for being individual and people link them through quality. It’ s a really big thing for us. We don’ t just use any ice; we use ice from the Edinburgh Ice Company. It’ s the premiumization of the little things, like a gin and tonic,” Louise explains.“ Our venues also look and smell great. We have a contract with a company called ScentAir who provide these little machines that blast out a really beautiful scent that represents each venue. Our venue, Copper Blossom, which is a ladies’ cocktail venue, has a lovely peachy scent when you walk in. The Raven, which is more focused around darts and sport, has a more masculine, musky scent.
“ We never want‘ Signature Pubs’ to be spoken about; we want our individual bars to be in the spotlight. The word‘ corporate’ is almost banned in our culture; we treat every venue like it’ s our own. Our General managers are encouraged to have an entrepreneurial spirit and to pretend that their venue is their own business without the risks that come with it. If something doesn’ t work, we’ ll analyze, sometimes share a laugh, and applaud them for having a go whilst learning from mistakes.”
Uncompromising commitment
However, no great company is without its challenges and, unfortunately, the UK’ s hospitality sector presents a multitude of those. In the past ten years alone, the UK has seen six different prime ministers across two governments and a worldwide pandemic with three separate lockdowns, as well as the ongoing cost of living crisis and its continuing inflated costs, tax increases and economic instabilities. These issues have significantly impacted the hospitality industry with the UK Government frequently coming under fire for its lack of support to the sector. As an avid advocate for the industry, Louise is passionate
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