Commer Inns, the tenanted pub division of Tadcaster-based Commer Group, has bought 28 Tetley pubs in Yorkshire.

Jeff Anspach, finance director, James Crawfurd-Porter, operations director and Jim Walsh, chairman and managing director

The purchase from Allied Domecq takes the Commer Inns estate to 75 pubs, all located east of the Pennies and stretching from Leicestershire to Tyne & Wear.

Together with the purchases of eight individual pubs, Commer has now invested £7.5 million in acquisition and refurbishment in the last six months - almost doubling the size of its estate.

Chairman Jim Walsh said: "Against the trend in the industry our tenanted estate has achieved continuous barrelage growth over the last four years. We aim to maintain that success by a programme of improvements to the premises, careful recruitment of tenant licensees, and by developing our programme of motivating and incentivising our tenants.

"We are also actively seeking further suitable opportunities for accelerated growth by acquisition of groups of pubs or companies through the UK."

Privately-owned Commer made a pre-tax profit of £460,000 in 1998 - 40 per cent up from the previous year. It anticipates £1 million pre-tax profit over the next 12 months on £9 million turnover.

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