This year was the first Christmas since 2019 that hospitality businesses have been free to operate without Covid restrictions. New research has detailed a drop in sales for pubs in the UK, however, with the average venue seeing a drop by £855 over key days of Christmas trade in 2022.
Data collated by Oxford Partnership's Christmas 2022 Flash Report stated there had been a rise from the previous year for Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, Boxing Day, New Year's Eve and New Year's Day. However, sales were down from pre-pandemic levels by a tenth. The cost of living crisis, rail strikes and illness have been said to have played a key part in this drop.
Michelin-star restaurant Wilsons reported a "string of cancellations" on the Saturday before the Christmas weekend losing half of its covers for one evening on a vital day for the restaurant trade. Fortunately, through the power of Twitter, they were able to fill the bookings in 24 hours meaning they didn't lose out that day.
