Coronavirus closures and restrictions lose hospitality sector £80.8b in sales
The Covid-19 pandemic has wiped a staggering £80.8b off hospitality's sales in just 12 months, equivalent to around £220m of sales lost every day or more than £9m every hour.
According to the latest edition of the UKHospitality quarterly tracker with CGA, sales from the start of April 2020 to the end of March 2021 totalled £46b, down by 64% on £126.8b in the previous 12 months.
Many venues have been unable to trade for most of the past year, and all restaurants, pubs and bars have been limited to deliveries and takeaways throughout the first quarter of 2021.
The Market Recovery Monitor from CGA and AlixPartners found that around 12,000 licensed premises closed in Britain between January 2020 and March 2021. Of those remaining, some sites have been able to reopen for outdoor service but the vast majority will not be able to return for several weeks and, even then, will do so under restrictions until at least 21 June.
Kate Nicholls, chief executive of UKHospitality, said: "It has been a catastrophic year for the sector and we are by no means out of the woods yet. Hospitality's ability to reopen will remain massively hampered until the government delivers on its commitment to dropping Covid restrictions and measures on 21 June. Even then, with so many companies facing rent debts and business rates bills, after more than a year with little trading, many companies – and thousands more jobs – will be in jeopardy unless further support is forthcoming, particularly on tackling the rent debt crisis that threatens our recovery."
Photo: Jordan Feeg/shutterstock.com
