Cost of Living
Coverage explores the impact of economic pressures on consumer spending, staff retention, and operational costs across the UK hospitality sector. We report on inflation, wage demands, energy prices, and discretionary income trends, analysing how restaurants, pubs, caterers, and other operators are adapting pricing, staffing, and promotional strategies in response to shifting demand and household budgets.
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Mar- 2023 -9 MarchPeople
Over 2m hospitality workers suffering ‘declining mental health’
Over 2 million people who work in the hospitality sector are suffering from “declining mental health” as a result of the cost of living, according to the State of Financial Wellbeing index from Wagestream. The index also found that 67% of hospitality staff have cut back on their spending with…
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2 MarchFeatures
Revenge of the dish: Are we eating out more after Covid?
Revenge dining. You may have not heard of the term but you’re probably aware of the idea. It’s the theory that more people ate out at restaurants in 2022 following the end of lockdown restrictions as a result of not being able to for so long. Opentable research published in…
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2 MarchPubs and Bars
Northern cities lead growth for UK hospitality, research finds
Cities in the north of England are leading growth in UK hospitality despite the impacts of Covid, the cost of living crisis and rail strikes, new research has found. The ‘State of the North’ research from Northern Restaurant and Bar and CGA by NielsenIQ found that in most key northern…
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2 MarchCatering Companies
Good Q4 for contract catering but sales still behind 2019 levels
Contract catering sales were 27% higher between October and December 2022 compared with 2021, according to data from CGA and Bidfood. Caterers’ sales in the private sector were up by 32% year-on-year as more people switched back from home-based working to offices. However, Q4 in 2021 was impacted by growing…
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Feb- 2023 -17 FebruaryBreweries and Distilleries
Heavitree returns to profit in FY22
Heavitree has reported an operating profit of £1.42m in FY22, up from a loss of £59,000 the prior year, as the group “finished the year returning numbers similar to those achieved before the start of the pandemic”. The year saw the brewery increase its turnover by 57.64% to £7.28m against…
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Jan- 2023 -30 JanuaryFeatures
Dining out on success: The rebound of seated dining numbers
At the start of the year Opentable released its study into the nation’s dining habits for 2022. In it the company found that seated dining numbers had risen dramatically on the back of the end of lockdown restrictions. Robin Chiang discusses why this happened and how Opentable went about collecting…
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23 JanuaryFeatures
Heaven on earth: Heavenly Desserts’ international expansion
Catering Today sits down with Heavenly Desserts co-founder and managing director Yousif Aslam. He discusses the company’s 2022, its first Canadian store and future expansion plans. Could you just tell me a little bit about the history of the company? We opened our first store in Birmingham in 2008 and…
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23 JanuaryBusiness
Consumer confidence improves for first time in 15 months
UK consumer confidence in the final quarter of 2022 improved by half (+0.6) a percentage point, according to the latest Deloitte Consumer Tracker, marking the end of a 15-month period of consecutive decline. Deloitte said overall confidence was boosted by “significant” quarter-on-quarter improvement in sentiment towards levels of debt (+3.8…
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13 JanuaryPubs and Bars
High demand for live music in pubs and bars, CGA finds
Nearly 80% of people said that they were more likely to visit a pub, bar or other similar venue if it offers live music, according to data from CGA and artist booking platform Gigrealm. As well as this 73% of people said they were more likely to stay at a…
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Dec- 2022 -22 DecemberGovernment
Business energy bills to be capped under new gov scheme
The government has unveiled a new plan that is set to cap wholesale energy bills for businesses for an initial six-month period from 1 October. The Government Energy Bill Relief Scheme, unveiled today (21 September) by business secretary Jacob Rees-Mogg, will reportedly bring support for households, businesses and public sector…
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