The 1908 pub on Main Road is offered as a going concern, free of tie, with the £75,000 covering goodwill, fixtures and fittings. What is for sale and what it means for regulars.

The lease of the Black Horse, the 1908 pub on Main Road in Biggin Hill, is on the market at £75,000. Licensed property agent Sidney Phillips announced the sale on 6 October, describing it as “a going-concern leasehold business”.

Biggin Hill is about five miles south of Bromley town centre. The pub sits on the main road between the town centre and the airfield.

What is for sale

The £75,000 buys the lease, the goodwill and the fixtures and fittings, according to the agent. It does not buy the building. The lease is free of tie, which means the licensee can buy beer and other stock from any supplier rather than from a pub company.

Sidney Phillips lists what a new licensee would take on:

  • a traditional bar, a games room and a snug
  • a commercial kitchen
  • three-bedroom owners’ accommodation upstairs
  • parking for up to 10 cars
  • a gravel and decking area seating up to 60
  • a beer garden with children’s play equipment, an outdoor television and seating for up to 50

The agent describes a drinks-led business with “a loyal local following” and customers travelling from Beckenham and Orpington. Its calendar includes monthly jam nights, darts on Mondays, poker on Thursdays, bikers’ meets on Saturdays and televised sport.

The agent’s pitch to buyers is the food. It says there is “great potential to expand the food offering and drive sales higher”.

The building

The Black Horse is a two-storey pub that the agent dates to around 1908, and the gable carries “Est. 1908” in painted lettering.

It is the second Biggin Hill pub in the news this autumn. The Old Jail on Jail Lane, shut since early 2023, has planning and listed building applications in from the WH Pubs group to reopen it. That pub was marketed freehold in December 2024 at a guide price of £495,000 plus VAT. The Black Horse sale is a different kind of deal: the business and the lease change hands, and the pub keeps trading.

What it means for you

  • The pub is not closing. A leasehold sale as a going concern means a new licensee takes over a trading business. The agent’s own description is of an established pub with regular events.
  • Expect changes to the menu. The agent is selling the pub on the strength of its kitchen and the room to grow food sales, so a buyer is likely to arrive with that plan.
  • The price is not the value of the pub. £75,000 is for the lease, goodwill and fittings. Stock is extra, at valuation. The freehold stays with the landlord.
  • If you are interested in buying, the agent’s contact is Sidney Phillips on 01892 725900 or southeast@sidneyphillips.co.uk.

We have not named the current licensees. If the Black Horse wants to tell regulars what the sale means for them, our contact details are on the corrections and complaints page.

Sources