HOME
CONTACT


cornerstone noun /ˈkɔː.nə.stəʊn/
something that is extremely important because everything else depends on it

Welcome to Cornerstone Inns!

We are a network of pubs and bars operated by unique worker co-operatives, building on a predecessor company that was described at the Pub Company Summit as one of the ‘best operators in the country you’ve never heard of’, and was a multiple winner of the Publican Award (the pub "Oscars") for Best Community Pub Operator.

At present our network consists of :

    The Hive, Winsford - a venue for entertainment, learning and community activities now owned by its customers and staff through a community benefit society that is independent of Cornerstone but eg is a member of our buying group.

Cornerstone Inns is a Community Interest Company that is part of the wider Cornerstone family, which is a support network for community businesses based around the idea that the best people to own and run local businesses are the community themselves. Not only are community businesses more responsive to local needs, their dividends and rent remain in the local economy rather than being lost to the head offices of multinational corporations.

But community enterprises are at a disadvantage when it comes to competing with big corporations. They can lack operational experience, and the economies of scale needed to purchase at competitive prices and access specialist services such as training and compliance. Cornerstone provides a buying group, mentoring, back-office services and a loyalty scheme, allowing community businesses to concentrate on giving the best possible service to their customers.

Imagine staff that went the extra mile because it benefited the company that they were part-owners of, and who could work more hours across a town in different venues that all had the same tills and similar products. Imagine the employee-owned operating company paying a fair, turnover-based rent to a community-owned company that owned the building and which distributed the rent in part as dividends and in part to support local culture such as music festivals. Imagine the customer-shareholders getting a say in how the pub is run - whether it shows football, and whether beer prices should go up to pay for it - and yes, we’ve had customers voting to put up the price of a pint to pay for Sky!

See the Cornerstone Culture website for more details of how the Cornerstone model works.