VOTE NOW: do you sell gift cards at your pub?

Sales of gift cards across the sector have been predicted to increase by more than four times as much as last year, new data has revealed.

The figures, from hospitality e-commerce platform Toggle, showed sales were set to hit a “record-breaking” amount of £5m on Black Friday (24 November), an increase of 425% compared with 2022 levels.

Additional revenue 

Toggle CEO Dan Brookman said: “Black Friday is the biggest day of the year for hospitality gift card sales according to our data and we are expecting 2023 to blow 2022 out of the water.

“The growth of our customer base has been huge this year, and brands are starting to realise, with our help, the value of gift cards as additional revenue.

“This is often a missed opportunity in hospitality, but Black Friday is a proven way for operators to boost revenue and drive footfall to venues.

“Those that can capitalise on Black Friday, will not only to boost sales for November and December but, with the right offers in place, can also generate revenue during the quieter post-Christmas period.”

Alternative evenings 

Earlier this month, data from VoucherCodes estimated pubs were expected to welcome around 10m guests over the festive period with around £12bn predicted to be spent in the on-trade.

In addition, according to booking platform DesignMyNight, the most popular days for 2023 Christmas parties are expected to be December 1, 7, 8 and 14, with a surge of bookings by late November.

Access Hospitality managing director of leading sector technology specialists Champa Magesh said: “As Thursday and Friday nights start to fill up, be prepared to encourage group bookers to switch to alternative evenings and consider providing a different offer, or incentives, for the quieter nights of the week.”