Peach Factory reports that spending on eating and drinking out-of-home bounced back in June after a flat May with like-for-like sales for the month up a healthy 3.9% on the same time last year, according to latest Coffer Peach Business Tracker data. Total sales were ahead 4.7%.
Much of the recovery can be put down to the half-term school holidays and the football World Cup effect, with restaurants and food-led pubs in particular benefiting from the fact that there was no major tournament this year, commented Peter Martin of Peach Factory, the market consultancy which produces the sector Tracker in partnership with KPMG, UBS and the Coffer Group
The data, from 23 major pub and restaurant operators, also shows pubs and restaurants continuing to out-perform the retail sector. According to the British Retail Consortium / KPMG Retail Sales Monitor total UK retail sales were up just 1.5% in June.
“The football World Cup in June last year had a mixed impact. While drinks-led pubs in general saw an upside, restaurants generally suffered sales drops. Big sporting events are a mixed blessing – and even pubs didn’t perform as well as they had hoped last year,” added Peter Martin.
“That said the increase this June shows an underlying resilience in consumer spending on eating and drinking out, which seems less fickle than retail. While it would be premature to forecast any significant upturn for the market, it remains solid,” he added.
May had seen a slight 0.3% decline in like-for-like sales – following a 3.8% uplift in the holiday month of April.
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