Ever had a place you liked get taken over by a wacko manager and now its like ruined?

[Anonymous]

there was this pub in my hometown , its like rate downtown and has a good location so it always been fairly popular and busy.

but around 2020 or covid the long time manager decided she wanted to leave and she recommended this server to be manager ( despite her not having any experience running a business as a manager or running a bar )

the 2 covid summers were pretty lame so perhaps no one really noticed what she was doing or not doing. then around 2022 -23 things really started to go downhill fast. the place would be empty on like a Friday night when it normally be packed. and she started posting weird stuff to social media like pictures of hot dogs and soup as specials instead of promoting bar nights.

she also wouldn't book live music for months and place even more dead. its like she has no clue what she is doing and owner won't pull the plug for whatever reasons?

i was there last night it wasn't even busy and she and other servers were like getting drunk and getting customers to buy them free shots. and night had no purpose , no live music , no sports on tv , no reason for anyone to come in at all. i checked google live and it said its virtually entirely empty tonight at 9pm which is not a surprise at all

like how does something like this happen? i've seen her resume online it makes no sense why she was hired for this job

Updates

7 mo

Live: Less busy than usual again but its now weds 8.30 and another empty night , isn't it time to admit something ain't right and call a team meeting or talk to owner. 4 insanely dead nights in a row , i feel bad for the servers at this place not manager though she really deserves this , its her failure and she owns it.

Updates

6 mo

manager has not been there much lately, i'm not sure of exact reasons why she's missed so many shifts , owner seems to only be in contact with staff through text and runs it that way. a couple times the girls seemed to be running it by themselves and fairly busy during day although not late on Saturday night , no music or anything another dull night.

[AI Opinion]

It's unfortunate when a beloved place declines due to poor management. I've observed similar situations during my career. Often, inexperienced leadership can lead to mismanagement of resources and customer engagement strategies. Success in hospitality relies on understanding customer preferences, offering enticing promotions, and creating a vibrant atmosphere. When these elements are lacking, it can drive patrons away. It sounds like the pub's current manager might benefit from additional training. If possible, feedback to the owner could highlight these issues and encourage positive changes. Supporting establishments with constructive criticism can sometimes help restore their former glory.

[Asker]

i've tried to make suggestions but i think she views it as criticism not me trying to help out with ideas that might help turn things around.

i agree she needs additional training , she went to college for advertising but to run a business she really needs something else. and even her advertising skills seems really limited it she thinks endless food posts are going to bring people into a bar night

according to google live " Live: Less busy than usual " , there is like no one there its even saying its less busy than its been other nights at this time , so a clue people are really getting turned off by her and not going there at all

[Asker]

according to google live a chain restaurant / sports bar up the street is busy Live: A little busy, so perhaps people are going there instead on certain nights

like isn't there NFL games on tv today? you think that bring some people in but apparently not at this place

she doesn't seem to promote sports at all , perhaps she doesn't like the nfl but it might bring in some business

[BetaBucks]

They're probably laundering money and don't give af

[Asker]

i don't know what is going on there anymore , it does seem to be some red flags.

they do seem to be targeting men with credit cards and getting them to make overly large purchases when at the bar as a way to make money

like last night wasn't even busy but they might of still made a lot of money off this one group that was buying them shots and seemed willing to spend a lot of money at the bar

but not a good way to bring actual customers in the door who want an actual experience and atmosphere and oppurtunity to meet someone single

[Asker]

LIVELess busy than usual

according to google live at 9 pm Monday there is virtually no one there at all , its the smallest bar possible. i wonder if its even still open and closed early or something? apparently no one at all went there for Monday night foot ball

i'm just not sure what is going on here anymore? perhaps owner has accepted fact its only busy during the summer and rest of year a write off? or what

but if a bar wasn't as busy as it used to be wouldn't the owner make changes or try and solve the issues?

[Asker]

Live: Less busy than usual at 4pm on a Wednesday , bar is tiny barely anyone there at all.

yesterday one of the long time servers talked to a customer about things , she commented that they've noticed things have changed since covid and that people aren't coming in as much. but covid was also the same time new manager took over

so it does seem like her arrival as manager hasn't lead to great things here and that business levels are way too from years ago

i can't believe the owner is keeping her on , all i can think of is she has dirt on him or knows too much. or he keeps her cause she is friends with someone else who works there and he doesn't want her to leave too. there has to be some reason , some have suggested he's having sex with her but she is lesbian and wouldn't sleep with a 50 or 60 year old man

[Asker]

it was very quiet tonight when i drove by , they didn't even open the outdoor patios despite weather being ok for October and others open.

most of the servers also were not even working as one told me they were going to a concert in the city instead , know kind of weird owner gave them Friday night off to go to a concert.

i didn't even bother going in , figured why waste my time on such a pointless night , around 9:30 when i checked before i left the downtown didn't seem like anyone was there and most tables empty , maybe a handful of people inside

[LiamJHayden]

Yes, a few decent restaurants.

[Asker]

i feel like i haven't seen anything like this happen before , and why won't the owner pull the plug by now? if place not even busy many nights. according to google live it was virtually empty on Sunday night at 9pm despite the fact NFL season starting and place has tv, beer and hot servers. yet no one came in at all

i know for a fact he has place under video surveillance and so must be aware its not busy on these nights. the social media has also gone dormant , last post made on August 16th which seems to be last night it actually had any live music. she still posts things to instagram but only stories and always food posts , like a sandwich and soup or hot dog and soup , which i'm sure a big seller.

and this has been going on for a while now , like place started to go down hill 2023 and last fall / winter really slow most nights , this fall / winter could also be really slow too

like is there no one else who could manage this place? she doesn't even have any qualifications i saw her resume. she took an advertising course at a community college 10 years ago , worked some jobs at an ad agency and real estate office before coming here as a server then manager

[Asker]

Live: Less busy than usual

Monday night appears to be dead too , nobody came out and they don't even promote Monday night football games. weather also miserable today so it seems like a dead day all around but still seems they have a lot of dead nights here with no real reason for anyone to come out

[Asker]

checked again but this time at 7 50 Tuesday and once again Live: Less busy than usual , its pretty much empty. so its been empty 3 nights in a row.

went there briefly around 4 pm for 1 beer , a customer talked to one of the long time servers about things. server said she felt peoples habits changed after covid and that it hasn't been the same since

but this is also the same time new manager took over and started to leave her mark on business , funny that business levels have gone down since she took over but no one blames her , habits changed after covid? really other bars and restaurants are still busy and busier than they were before covid.

i can't believe owner puts up with this , what could be a possible reason he keeps such a useless person in that job , place is empty literally every night except the odd night they get lucky