Even before it started, Noel Anderson knew it was going to be one of the most important meetings of his life – if not the most important meetings. So, he made sure to prepare. He printed off a copy of his insurance policy with FBD, which contained a clause covering his two Dublin pubs from business interruption as a result of infectious diseases.

Then, he printed off the side letter he had received from the Irish-owned insurance company just 54 hours before, covering that he was insured specifically for the coronavirus. Anderson had seen the images from Italy and was concerned about the impact that the pandemic could potentially have on his own business. So, with his policy up for renewal, he asked specifically for his next policy to cover Covid-19. FBD obliged, and provided him with a letter of comfort, received just days before the government locked down the economy in March 2020.

When the lockdown occurred though, the mood music changed – for both Anderson and for the other 1,100 publicans who assumed they were insured by FBD. As incoming chairman of the Licensed Vintners Association, Anderson was one of the team sent for crisis talks with the then CEO of FBD Fiona Muldoon on St Patrick’s Day.

“There were a few awkward intros. And then we got into things with them fairly quickly,” Anderson told The Currency in this week’s podcast. “I knew it was probably going to be one of the most important meetings I was ever going to have. And very quickly on, their main defence was that it was not a forced government closure. Donal O’Keefe, the CEO of the LVA, explained that it was and that he was at the meeting with the government where they effectively said that they were shutting us down. FBD were, ‘oh, no, no’.”

Anderson, the co-owner of the Lemon & Duke and The Bridge 1859 in Dublin, explained about his own circumstances and his own side letter. Indeed, the FBD official who signed it was also at the meeting. “I said to Fiona Muldoon that I had 40 staff literally waiting at the end of a phone call to see how this meeting went.

“I told Fiona Muldoon there was right and wrong in life. I told her that they were covering it and they should cover it. Unfortunately, they were not having a bar of it at that time. And I knew at the end of that meeting I would have a fight on my hands. She said to me that she could see I was angry and that she could see I was a serious person. I said you haven’t seen me angry yet.”

The fallout from that meeting, and FBD’s insistence on not covering business interruption for the army of publicans that had policies with it, became one of the major business stories of the crisis. Anderson became one of four pubs to successfully take a test case against the insurer, but it was hard fought, and, by his own admission, the mammoth legal actions took a person toll.

But Anderson, like the others involved in the case, remained resolute. “I think it could have definitely been handled differently by FBD,” he says. “And that is what we were all trying to say to them along the way. Probably in hindsight if they look back on things, they probably would agree with that themselves.”

Even now, however, FBD are playing hardball over the quantum of pay-outs – a judgment on this issue is due in December, although other unresolved aspects of the case remain unheard. “This will go on and on,” he says, adding: “But it has not been good for FBD.”

Navigating lockdowns

Prior to the pandemic, Anderson had been forecasting the best ever year for Lemon & Duke and The Bridge 1859, the two pubs he owns with rugby stars Jamie Heaslip, Rob Kearney, Dave Kearney and Sean O’Brien. However, the various lockdowns meant his new role was navigating a business through intermittent lockdowns and significant periods of uncertainty.

“I have lost track of how many different opening and closures there have been. In the first one, we tried to look after our staff as much as possible. We are trying to deal with the insurance thing. I paid out €40,000 in holiday pay to them. Trying to make sure they were ok and set as best they could be. You shut down as much costs as you can. You talk to the landlords about rents,” he says.

What about the banks? “In fairness to the banks, this time around they were very good. I think they saw this as an opportunity to regain some trust. And I think in fairness to them, the banks, they did, and they gave everybody that needed a break, a break.”

Anderson believes the initial supports from the state were “terrible”, but that the improvements were significant. “The government supports the second time around were so much better. They kept businesses alive, that was the policy. I know the government get a lot of stick – and we’ve been out front and centre and a lot of it – but the supports have been good and have kept a lot of business alive,” he says.

I think where the government have gone wrong with our sector – and I think they will probably admit this themselves – is the communications strategy through the whole thing. “It was a shambles. It was always death by 1,000 leaks. It was really frustrating. Having a coalition government in the middle of a crisis has not helped. I think the Tanaiste said there were 35 different variations. It was very hard to follow.”

The future of the city and the dearth of staff

The Bridge 1859 in located in Ballsbridge, while the Lemon & Duke is just off Grafton Street. Both have room for outdoor dining, something that has aided Anderson in recent months. With vaccinated people now able to dine indoors, he has seem a welcome return of business in recent weeks.

“Trading outside initially was really good. Some places that had big capacity did really well. Lemon and Duke has 60 seats outside and traded really well. I am noticing now that people are slowly but surely coming around to going inside. I am happy to see the green shoots coming through. It gave me confidence that we will come back,” he says.

However, he remains concerned about the future of the city centre. The Lemon & Duke for example needs a strong Grafton Street for passing trade, and there are currently 28 vacant units on Grafton Street.

“That is not good for the city. I think possibly rents will come down and there will be some different thinking going on. But I think hospitality will bounce back. And what is good about this is the outdoor scene in Dublin – it is like Barcelona. And I think it is important to keep it moving forward,” he says.

Another concern is that many former city centre worker will not return. “I was working lunch before I came to do this [podcast] and I could not see any office workers. We were busy enough but none of them stood out as office workers. So, I really question what is going to happen in September. Will they come back and start coming in again? Where does it sit in September or October? I can’t honestly tell you,” according to Anderson.

The major concern, however, is staff – or the lack of it. During a recent hearing with FBD, the insurer said that staffing was not an issue in the pub trade, a statement that Anderson and a vast swathe of the hospitality industry utterly reject. “Are they made in the head,” he says, arguing that his two head chefs left during the pandemic to take jobs in the construction sector.

“Everywhere is looking for people and there is no CVS coming. There is a lot of misinformation that people are overworked and underpaid. I would hope to think we are a good employer, pay our staff well, don’t go near tips, give them contracts. There is a lot of misinformation out there. I served my apprenticeship in the bar trade and have come through it.”

Why are people leaving? “It is a mix of things. My two head chefs went to construction. We were the industry that was on the bottom of the Covid list all the time. We had the most amount of uncertainty. They left because construction was the first one to reopen. A lot of people have returned home. Some are disillusioned but the uncertainty was a killer,” he says.

Anderson has been involved in the sector since his teens, when he took a job in a bar in Spain after completing his Leaving Certificate. He then dropped out of college (“too much like school”), and has worked in, managed or owned pubs ever since – save a year long stint as a rep with Red Bull during the last financial crisis.

As manager of the Grafton Lounge, he got to know Rob Kearney, who said he was interested in getting involved in a pub. The idea grew, with Anderson suggesting the idea of a pub in the rugby heartland of Ballsbridge backed by rugby players. One pub became two with Lemon & Duke, a New York style pub and restaurant in the city centre.

Anderson said they were the underbidders on a couple of pubs in recent times. “We chatted about it recently and we will definitely do one more,” he says.

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Investec is the sponsor of The Currency’s business podcast series. It provides a range of solutions, including specialist FX, Treasury, Corporate Finance and Lending services. To find out more about how Investec can help your business, click here.

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