On 4 July, Richmond Park constituents will find on their ballot papers seven candidates to choose from, including one candidate who is a pub owner.

Sandwiched on the ballot paper between the Labour and Conservative candidate is Chris French – owner of The Mitre pub in St Mary's Grove, Richmond. 

After the last general election in 2019, Chris had the idea of starting a political party for his pub as marketing strategy. 

Fast forward five years later, and here he is putting that light bulb moment into realisation. 

Chris tells me from the get-go: "None of it is political. At the end of the day I've just come up with a marketing idea that nobody else has ever thought of." 

The Mitre, Richmond features a beer garden with a TV screen showing all the games from the Euros 2024 (credit: Chris French).

Instead of splashing on a traditional marketing campaign, Chris is using the general election to market his pub to over 75,000 constituents for a small fee. 

"It cost £500 (to run as a candidate), which is a deposit that you put down. And if you can get five per cent of the votes, of the turn out, you do get your deposit back as well," the pub owner reveals." 

He adds: "I need around 3,000 and 4,000 votes probably and then I can get my deposit back. 

"If over the course of the next few weeks 20 people come down (to The Mitre) because of it and they all spend £25...it's worthwhile." 

Aside from it being a genius idea and low in costs, Chris is doing this to make more residents aware of The Mitre which like many pubs across the country has been struggling since the Covid-19 pandemic. 

The Mitre serves beers from across the country some of which you would not see in other pubs, its owner says (credit: Chris French).

A report from the Nighttime Industries Association (NTIA) revealed earlier this year that 3,000 pubs, bars and nightclubs have shut since the pandemic. 

The 47-year-old comments: "We came here in 2015. It's been a real struggle since then not going to lie to you. 

"It took three or four years before the business started to pick up. And then, of course, Covid happened. 

"And then we went back to square one. We have built our business again and every business could always do better." 

When I ask Chris what makes his pub different as there are still thousands in the capital, he says: "We're independent. 

"We source our beers from all independent breweries from over the country. They are all outside the M25. 

"The reason why we do that is a lot of local pubs sell local beers where our beers are from The Orkney Islands, Exeter, Manchester, Sheffield, Sussex, Kent and Devon." 

Owner of The Mitre, Chris French, is running for Richmond Park for his own party - his pub (credit: Chris French).

He continues: "The local pubs won't have access to those beers if they are part of the pub chain, so I don't worry about the big pub chains because we're completely different." 

Aside from the vast selection of crafts and ales from across England, The Mitre also serves "very good" pizza and has its own beer garden with a TV screen to enjoy the Euros this summer. 

"We've got a small team...who all know each other, all work well with each other and again that helps, Chris says. 

"That helps the business. Everybody knows what they're doing. They work for each other." 

The Mitre, Richmond is a free house pub owned by Chris French (credit: Chris French).

Adding: "I think one of the things that makes this pub unique is having a landlord myself who lives upstairs, owns the business, lives and breathes the business." 

Ultimately, Chris did not put himself down as a Richmond Park candidate to "tread on other candidates' toes," but to make more people aware of his pub. 

Chris admits: "The pub has always been part of the local community for hundreds of years and it is only in recent decades that we have a deterioration of communities and people having a place to go to and chat to. 

"You should never have lonely people in communities. If there is a pub, there's always somebody to talk to." 

Even if his marketing stunt is not that successful, on 4 July, Chris at least knows that he will have one vote secured from the constituency. His own. 

To find out more about The Mitre in St' Mary's Grove, Richmond, click here.

We want to provide Richmond with more and more clickbait-free local news. To do that, we need a loyal newsletter following. Help us survive and sign up for our free weekly newsletter by clicking the link HERE.

Follow Richmond Nub News on Facebook , Instagram and X to stay updated on the latest news in your area. Don't miss out!