February brings boost for pubs but restaurant chains suffer

Managed pubs saw 1.4% boost in like-for-like sales in February, but chain restaurants did not fare so well seeing a 1.7% decline.

Drink-led pubs were the strongest performers, with London also out-performing the rest of Britain, according to the latest Coffer Peach Business Tracker.

Karl Chessell, director of CGA, said: "The mini heatwave towards the end of the month certainly boosted pub trading, and also helped restaurant sales, as people enjoyed the unseasonal sunshine, but unfortunately it wasn't enough to move the whole market much. The branded restaurant sector is still suffering from declining sales, and despite a better end to the month, early February was generally poor for restaurants.

"While people will remember the sun, it was cold at the start of the month and school half-term holidays appear to have given no more of a boost to sales than they did last year. Even within the managed pub market food sales are under pressure. The trading uplift in February has essentially come from increased drink sales, which were up 3.5%, against a 0.9% fall in food."

Mark Sheehan, managing director of Coffer Corporate Leisure added: "There is no quick fix for the restaurant sector. Oversupply in some areas will mean that we may continue to see negative numbers for the foreseeable future, especially within the M25 where competition is fiercest."

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