Lucky Saint, the UK’s leading independent alcohol-free brand, has announced it will be adding to London’s pub scene with the opening of The Lucky Saint – the first alcohol-free brand to do so.
Launching in March 2023 in Marylebone, the brand will honour the centuries-old traditions of the British pub, whilst creating a food, drink and events offering to create a ‘pub for our times’. Findings will be shared with the wider hospitality sector in the form of a free sector analysis report, offering advice and recommendations to support servicing consumers’ changing attitudes towards alcohol.
The Lucky Saint opening follows a bumper few years for the no and low sector, with demand soaring for alcohol-free beer and the no and low sector’s revenue expected to be worth £410 million in 2023. The brand also recently announced a £10m+ Series A investment round.
Luke Boase, Founder of Lucky Saint, commented: “Pubs have been at the heart of communities, and alcohol has been at the heart of pubs, for centuries. As attitudes towards alcohol change, it’s an opportunity for pubs to evolve. Our aim is to keep pubs cemented as the place for social connection whilst building on our mission to inspire the world to drink better”.
The Lucky Saint is launching following research that over half of UK adults plan to moderate in 2023, and almost 1 in 3 pub visits in the UK are already alcohol-free.
The pub will become the brand’s new HQ, with upper levels acting as offices and event spaces. It will also introduce a wide range of new initiatives championing alcohol-free, including a training cellar which will host workshops for staff on looking after alcohol-free beer on draught and hosting regular tastings of the extensive alcohol-free menu to improve knowledge and service of no and low drinks.
Lucky Saint will also create a staff training programme in partnership with mindful drinking business Club Soda – aiming to evolve service in pubs away from being alcohol-led. The drinks menu at The Lucky Saint will feature the best of both alcohol-free and alcoholic drinks – creating an inclusive offer that caters for all. Bar staff will also be trained in Mental Health First Aid, as part of their partnership with Mental Health First Aid England.
Emma McClarkin, CEO of the BBPA (British Beer & Pub Association), of which Lucky Saint became the first alcohol-free beer member in 2020, said of the opening: “Lucky Saint are a business full of brilliant ideas, with a passion for people, so it’s a natural fit for them to invest in and support the pub industry. It’s great to see the old institution, The Mason’s Arms, given a new lease of life as The Lucky Saint.”
Formally known as The Masons Arms on Devonshire Street, and having laid vacant for three years, Lucky Saint have restored the pub over a 5-month period, partnering with Orla Read Interior Design and Hipgrave Construction. The pub has been a watering hole for broadcasters for decades, positioned round the corner from the BBC, and will honour its broadcasting roots with its bookable podcast studio.
