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Britain’s largest managed pub operators recorded strong sales growth in the week of Christmas, while restaurants and bars saw sales fall, according to the latest NIQ RSM Hospitality Business Tracker.
In the seven days from 22 December 2025, like-for-like sales across all managed hospitality operators rose by 1.2% compared with the same period a year earlier.
Pubs outperformed the wider sector, with like-for-like sales up 4.8% year-on-year. The increase was ahead of inflation and stronger than the Tracker’s results for most weeks of 2025.
The growth was driven by increased consumer spending in the days immediately before Christmas, supported by a run of bank holidays that gave people extended time off through the middle and end of the week.
However, the Tracker revealed that other parts of the hospitality sector faced a tougher festive period. Like-for-like sales at managed restaurants fell 1.1% compared with Christmas week in 2024, extending a difficult year in which the sector recorded year-on-year declines in 10 of the first 11 months.
Bar groups experienced a sharper downturn, with like-for-like sales down 15.5% over the same period.
Karl Chessell, director of hospitality operators and food, EMEA at NIQ, said: “Pubs’ real-terms growth in the week of Christmas shows how they remain a much-loved place for people to celebrate the festive season with families and friends. However, negative figures at restaurants and bars round out a very difficult year for many operators, and confidence is running low among consumers and business leaders alike.
“With cash reserves depleted and rates rises in the pipeline to add to a relentless burden of costs, the sector faces a challenging start to 2026.”
Saxon Moseley, head of leisure and hospitality at RSM UK, added: “Festive trading mirrored the broader trends seen across 2025, with pubs reporting solid sales growth while restaurants and bars saw revenue contract year-on-year, leaving little to celebrate for these beleaguered segments of the market.
“With results failing to live up to expectations for many operators and a raft of cost increases scheduled for 2026, there will be real concern of further casualties on the high street in the coming months.”
