Sinking feeling for pub owners as beer sales fall

Dec 5 2008 by Andrew Mernin, The Journal

NIGHTCLUB and pub bosses in the region are bracing themselves for the toughest festive period in recent years, as new research finds that beer sales are sinking twice as fast in the North East as the national average.

Figures from market analyst AC Nielsen show the number of pints being pulled in the North East have plunged 15.7% on last year – almost double the national average fall of 8.4%.

The report cites the smoking ban as a key contributor to the declining figures, while the impact of the economic downturn on the spending power of North East punters and the spiraling cost of supermarket beer are also likely to have played their part.

Utopian Leisure, which runs fun pubs in the North East and Belfast, is gearing up for a harsh Christmas as thrifty consumers increasingly opt to stay at home over the festive period.

Managing director Bob Senior said: “The economic situation has to have an impact this Christmas and I wouldn’t be surprised if our sales were down by 10% this year than on previous years.”

He also said the bleak findings of the AC Nielsen report could be a sign that the resilience shown by the North East pub industry in previous economic downturns has finally given way to the unique pressures of the current state of the economy.

“The North East has been particularly resilient in the past, but an awful lot of working men’s clubs are now being hit. People who are paid on a weekly basis are being impacted more. People in professions tend to have savings to spend, but people who earn money on a weekly basis tend to spend it when they get it.”

On a positive note, Mr Senior said the fact that Christmas falls on a Thursday this year could boost the leisure industry as revellers hit the town on the post-Christmas weekend as well as on Christmas Eve, Christmas Day and Boxing Day. Meanwhile, North East pub entrepreneur Alistair Arkley said the AC Nielsen findings were “frightening, it’s like the industry is falling apart.”

Four months ago, Mr Arkley told nebusiness he was fed up with premature reports of the death of the English pub, but yesterday acknowledged that trade had taken a sudden turn for the worse, with pub closures across Britain accelerating to five a day during the first half of this year.

Mr Arkley, who has a 50% stake in Billingham-based New Century Enterprises and is chairman of the Passionate Pub Company and Chameleon Inns, said the smoking ban has had a huge impact on pubs in the region.