A mobile phone salesman turned restaurateur has bucked a trend by succeeding in business for a decade.

Around 60 per cent of new restaurants fail by the third year, but the Gladstone Arms was making a profit from year one.

When Leighton Davis took over the pub in Gladstone Road ten years ago, it was called The Borough Arms and had been boarded up.

After investing thousands of pounds in the establishment, it has been consistently high on Trip Advisor and is at the top for Chippenham.

Mr Davis said: “We are turning hundreds of people away each week; we’ve just not got enough space.”

It can seat 60, as when it first opened, and despite its success there are no plans to expand. But capacity is more than doubled when the south-facing beer garden is opened up in the summer months.

The Gladstone Arms was the first business venture of Mr Davis, 41, who was born and bred in Chippenham.

He said: “My favourite pastime is eating in other people’s restaurants and I thought, I can turn this pub around. I was inexperienced when we first opened, but we’ve learned as we’ve gone along and adapted.

“It’s taken a few years and a lot of money but we have built up a good reputation. I think a lot of our success is down to we really care; we’re big on customer service.”

The Gladstone Arms employs 15 staff, five full-time, and head chef Ben Rawlings has been in his role for nine years. They offer a mix of pub grub and European dishes, ranging from pork and leek sausage and mash at £10 up to venison steak and dauphinoise potatoes at £17, with a selection of desserts.

Book on (01249) 660535.