The Government's Plan B Covid-19 restrictions hit sales at Revolution Bars Group over the Christmas period by almost 25%, according to new figures.
The Manchester-headquartered company, which is behind the Revolution and Revolucion de Cuba brands, has said its sales fell 23% in the six weeks to January 1, compared to the same period in 2019, because of the rules which included the return to the 'Work From Home' instruction and implementation of Vaccine Passports for late night bars.
The group added the Government's messaging to encouraging the limiting of social interactions was "unhelpful".
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For the group's 26 weeks to January 1, its like-for-like sales increased by 1.4% compared to the same period two years ago.
A statement issued to the London Stock Exchange, said: "Despite the government's response to Omicron, which in our view was overly cautious and caused a substantial loss of trade during the important festive season, the board remains confident of achieving its full year expectations assuming that the Covid landscape does not significantly deteriorate.
"We are encouraged by the strong performance pre Christmas and yesterday's welcome announcement from the Government about easing all restrictions but are nonetheless alert to and monitoring closely the inflationary pressures building across all elements of the supply chain and are taking action to mitigate these where possible."
Chief executive Rob Pitcher said: "I am so proud of our team's resilience in the face of the confusing government messaging and the disappointment of the wave of corporate booking cancellations it caused during December.
"The only comfort is that many of these parties have already been rebooked and it was pleasing to see the number of general guest bookings significantly up versus 2019 demonstrating that our young guest base remains as enthused and excited about our offering as we are.
"Yesterday's news of the scrapping of the work from home guidance and the cancellation of all other restrictions is very welcome for our business and will actively help rebuild consumer confidence.
"It is imperative that going forward there are no further restrictions as we all learn to live alongside Covid-19.
"We continue to urge the Government to support the recovery of the hospitality industry by leaving VAT at 12.5% and retaining business rates relief in line with the current levels of support.
"Our robust performance in H1 proves the resilience of our business, that our guests enjoy the fun and memorable experience we create which results in a highly cash generative business when operating free of restrictions."
