Heineken is set to breathe new life into dozens of pubs across the UK after announcing a £40m cash injection into its Star Pubs operation.

The Dutch brewing giant revealed that more than 600 of its 2,400 pubs will receive funds for improvements over the next year. Work has already begun to reopen ten pubs so far in 2025, with further long-closed sites earmarked for investment. Last year, the company reopened 62 of its long-term closed pubs, leaving its estate with the lowest level of shuttered venues since 2019, prior to the coronavirus pandemic.

“Consistent investment – rather than a stop, start approach – and a strategy of creating great locals have been key to helping our pubs weather the storms of the last few years,” said Lawson Mountstevens, managing director of Star Pubs. 

“This £40m inward investment from a Dutch business into UK pubs is a resounding vote of confidence in the future of the sector. Even with pressures on disposable income, people are still prioritising a trip to their local, valuing it as an everyday treat and as a way of connecting with their community.”

Mountstevens stressed that local pubs are “growth engines” in the economy, but that they face a “disproportionate tax burden”, calling on the government to reduce this when it overhauls the business rates regime later this year.