J D Wetherspoon is well-known in the United Kingdom for its more than 890 pubs, as well as a chain of upscale bars and boutique hotels. The firm, founded in 1979 by Tim Martin, grosses about $2.2 billion a year and employs more than 37,000 people. Martin prides himself on visiting anywhere from 10 to 20 of his establishments each week. He writes notes on the staff, the cutlery, the quality of food and, of course, the beer. Oh, and he consumes about two to four pints of it just about every day.
Martin’s official title at Wetherspoon, which is a publicly held company, is chairman and founder. But, don’t you dare call him that. “I’m a publican,” he said in a recent BBC interview. “My day-to-day life is running pubs.”
