Drink-led pub and bar groups suffer 90% sales drop across November

By James McAllister

- Last updated on GMT

Drink-led pub and bar groups suffer 90% sales drop across November according to Coffer Peach Business Tracker CGA

Related tags Coronavirus lockdown Wet-led pubs Sales Coffer peach business tracker Cga

Britain’s managed pub and restaurant groups saw sales wiped out in November as lockdown hit in England and tough trading restrictions continued in Scotland and Wales.

According to the latest Coffer Peach Business Tracker, drink-led managed pubs saw total sales for the month fall 88.8% on November last year, with bar operators down 90.2%.

Group-owned restaurants faired marginally better, as some were able to rely on delivery business, but still saw total sales tumble 65.9% against the same month in 2019.

Total sales in food-led pubs were down 85.0%.

Across the market as a whole, total sales were 79.0% below November 2019.

Lockdown in England came into force on November 5, closing all licensed premises, and carried on throughout the month.

With only limited opening permitted in Scotland and Wales, by the last week of the November just 6% of Britain’s managed pubs and restaurants were trading, with weekly sales down 88% across the market and trading in drink-led sites almost non-existent.

"November was a wipe out for the sector, and came on the back of difficult trading in both September and October as the roll-out of more regional COVID-19 restrictions depressed sales,” says Karl Chessell, director of business insight consultancy CGA, which produces the Tracker in partnership with The ​Coffer Group and RSM.

"In August, the Eat Out To Help Out initiative showed that demand is still there from consumers and we saw healthy sales in food-led businesses. However since then increasing restrictions has made trading progressively harder.

"Total sales for the sector were 21% below 2019 levels in September and 33.9% down in October before hitting the buffers last month.

"With half the country still in effective lockdown in Tier 3, and severe limits on trading in the other half in Tier 2, it is hard to see the sector finding much to celebrate in the run up to Christmas, always the market’s most important sales period."

At the end of November, underlying annual like-for-like sales for the whole market were down 43.7% on the previous 12 months.

A total of 48 companies provided data to the November Tracker.

Related topics Trends & Reports Casual Dining

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