The Standard has long been a tireless advocate for London’s magnificent, world-class, but increasingly embattled hospitality sector. Its restaurants, bars and pubs, which employ more than 250,000 people across the capital, are rightly lauded and form a huge part of the city’s global appeal.
But the industry is undoubtedly struggling. Not to fill its bars and dining rooms — anyone who has tried to get served in a City pub on a Thursday evening or secure a Saturday night table at a hot West End restaurant knows just how incredibly popular the best places still are. But what we consistently hear from despairing operators is how hard, often impossible, it has become to convert that revenue into the lifeblood of profit. That is why The Standard launched its Save Our Hospitality campaign at the start of what is shaping up to be another testing and gruelling year.
