Rudeness to the pub staff is on the rise in the UK, and Stella Artois is reminding people that it’s “nice to be nice” with a temporary name change and a new campaign that rewards basic politeness.

Here’s the deal…

According to research by Stella Artois and YouGov, 71% of hospitality workers said they had experienced rudeness from customers, especially since COVID lockdown measures were lifted in the UK earlier this year.

So in December Stella Artois is reminding pub and bar-goers that “It’s nice to be nice”, especially during the holidays, by changing their name to “Stella Please” and rewarding those who say “Can I have a Stella, please?” with £1 off their pint.

According to Creative Review,  ‘the temporary new brand name is being displayed in a reworked version of the iconic red Stella wordmark across bar taps, mats, T-shirts and other physical bar items in the participating venues, which should hopefully remind people to remember their manners.”

Stella has also partnered ‘Enfant terrible’ celebrity chef Marco Pierre White who stars in a new campaign spot that doesn’t mince words…

“Over the years I have witnessed my team be on the receiving end of rude and unnecessary behavior from customers,” said White. “In the lead up to a very busy Christmas period, I would like to proudly stand alongside the hospitality industry and do my bit and say please be polite.”

“We wanted to raise awareness of the pressures hospitality workers may face this season and our research shows how small acts of kindness from the public really can go a long way for them,” Tim Ovadia, global vice-president of Stella Artois added….

“This is an industry that is very dear to us and our ’Stella Please’ campaign further builds on the initiatives we have run over the past year to best support hospitality staff whatever the challenges being faced.”

The campaign, which is running in five pubs across London, Manchester, Birmingham, Newcastle and Newport, is also making a donation to charity Hospitality Action for each pint ordered to support hospitality workers.