Hospitality has lost 119 venues per week since March 2020
In London there have been nearly 3,000 new openings to offset 6,000 closures since 2020 with nearly one in six (16%) of today’s licensed premises being new since 2020
It has been revealed that 27,951 hospitality venues closed their doors between March 2020 and September 2024 at a rate of 119 per week, according to data from CGA.
However, 12,767 have opened during that time, either in vacated premises or in converted or new-build sites.
The net result is that the estate of licensed premises has shrunk by 13% in four years, but 13% of today’s sector is occupied by venues that have opened during that time.
The total number of premises has been reduced by nearly a fifth (19%) in the last decade and only just over half (55%) of sites trading in 2014 have the same identity today.
Alongside this, a third (32%) of today’s venues have launched in the last 10 years.
More than a third (35%) of bars and a quarter (25%) of bar restaurants at September 2024 were new openings since 2020.
Furthermore, just under a quarter of casual dining venues (24%) and other restaurants (23%) were new openings since 2020.
In London there have been nearly 3,000 new openings to offset 6,000 closures since 2020 with nearly one in six (16%) of today’s licensed premises being new since 2020.
Reuben Pullan, senior insight consultant at CGA by NIQ, said: “These numbers show the heavy impact of COVID, high costs and weak consumer confidence on Britain’s hospitality sector in the last few years. But they also highlight another big trend that is sometimes overlooked: the constant stream of new entrants into the market. Fresh concepts and expanding multi-site groups are keeping the On Premise diverse and dynamic, and they provide suppliers with great potential to sustain sales and reach new consumers.”
