Leeds student bags first-class grade for dissertation on Wetherspoons

A Leeds student has been awarded a first-class grade for his dissertation on Wetherspoons pubs.

Josh Griffiths, who studied BA Politics at the University of Leeds, is a huge fan of the popular pub chain. So, when the time came to finish off his degree, he decided to pay homage to Wetherspoons by focusing on the pub’s place in society.

The dissertation, titled ‘Mapping Pints and Place: A Spatial Analysis of J.D. Wetherspoon,’ explored how consumers use the chain of pubs, what products are popular behind the bar, and which locations could next see a Wetherspoons branch as the company expands.

Josh was awarded a mark of 74 for the dissertation, which helped him to obtain a first-class grade for his degree overall.

In his research, he used two popular Leeds student haunts- The Golden Beam in Headingley, and Beckett’s Bank in Leeds city centre- as well as numerous other Wetherspoons branches up and down the country. 

But the research also gave Josh plenty of opportunities to visit Spoons further afield.

He said: “I enjoyed visits to The Lion & The Unicorn in Waterloo station and The Samuel Peto in Folkestone, Kent, alongside some of the case study pubs.”

via Google Maps

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Josh’s research even caught the attention of Wetherspoons itself.

In his acknowledgements, he thanked Eddie Gershon, the Press Officer at J.D. Wetherspoons, for corresponding with him during his research. Through his contact with the company, his dissertation was also featured in the summer edition of Wetherspoon News, which is distributed at over 800 pubs across the UK.

Professor David Bell, Josh’s dissertation supervisor, commented that it was the first Wetherspoons-themed dissertation he’d seen in his almost 40-year career. 

He said: “I was really impressed by Josh’s finished project. He used observational data brilliantly to capture the diverse uses and customers, comparing different days and times to show the many roles which Spoons has in the community.

“He combined this with some GIS mapping to look for potential new sites for Wetherspoon venues to open.”

David added: “This was a really innovative mix of methods. I really enjoyed supervising Josh and have, myself, become an observer of Spoons life.”

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Featured image via LinkedIn and Google Maps.