Go to the pub now, or a bar or a restaurant, and you’d hardly think that the pandemic had happened. The sun has - finally - reappeared, beer gardens are packed, and people are spilling out of the city’s pubs and clubs. Same as it ever was.
But appearances can be deceptive. Two years on this month from the very first lockdown, when the country was thrown into that bizarre, at times unnerving stasis, while things might look like they’ve returned to normal, beneath the surface the hospitality industry is facing an existential crisis. And it will get worse before it gets better. Potentially much worse.
“It’s definitely not normal,” says Justin Crawford, co-owner of Electrik in Chorlton, the Hillary Step in Whalley Range and Volta in Didsbury. He’s also one of the directors of Escape To Freight Island and Refuge, so he’s got a bird’s eye view of the situation, from neighbourhood bars to upscale city centre spots where the footfall is in the thousands.
