 The company 's independence was maintained after Whitbread acted as a white knight by raising its stake in the company from 13 to 23 per cent , and the family and many small shareholders refused to sell their stakes . The chairman of Whitbread , Colonel Whitbread , is reputed to have said , " You are a very old firm . You have a very good name . You mustn 't go out . " At the time , it was rare for a company to win the emotional argument for independence , and it was the first time a regional brewery had headed off an offer from a national company . In 1970 , Charles Boddington retired and his son Ewart assumed the directorship . 
