Business booms for smoke-free bar ahead of ban

A PUBLICAN who introduced the smoking ban eight months ahead of schedule says business is booming.

Mary Hayes, who runs the Miller's Inn in Croom, Co Limerick, described the general reaction from customers as very positive.

"Initially, there was a bit of aggro from smokers but it was so slight that it didn't put us out a bit. It has not been any disadvantage to us at all," she said.

The bar has been non-smoking since it opened last August. It is part of the Croom Mills Visitor Centre, which Ms Hayes and her husband opened 10 years ago to showcase the Limerick village's 200-year milling history.

As an asthmatic, Ms Hayes finds the smoke-free pub much easier to work in and says her staff feel the same.

"The staff love the fact that it's non-smoking. It's an awful lot cleaner and a much more pleasant environment to work in," she said.

The move has gained coverage on CNN and other American and German television stations.

The bar has attracted passing sales reps, who say they prefer eating in a smoke-free environment. At night, the traditional music sessions draw big crowds, says Ms Hynes.

"There's a fantastic atmosphere and the place is jam-packed you can't get in the door," she said.

Ms Hayes said there had been smokers who had made comments such as: "The cheek of you, how dare you tell us what to do?" However, she said this had only occurred twice in eight months.

There is a corridor in the visitor centre that smokers can use but this will be off limits when the March 29 smoking ban comes into force.

Ms Hayes expects that many smokers will use the bar's outdoor tables, which are located on the banks of the River Maigue.

She has sympathy for publicans over customers who have always smoked in the bar. But she feels that the vintners' campaign against the smoking ban has been exaggerated.

"To be honest, I think it's a load of hot air. I think they didn't do themselves any favours. I think they made a disgrace of themselves," she said.

Croom is now off the beaten track since it was bypassed on the Limerick- Ennis route and American tourists often visit the picturesque village of Adare.

This means that despite the bar's location inside the visitor centre, most of the customers are Irish.

"It's much more home market than you would expect," said Ms Hayes.