More than half of operators plan to participate in Eat Out to Help Out
This comes ahead of the Government’s plans to announce a list of all businesses that have signed up to the scheme.
The poll by HIM/MCA Insight, a division of The Morning Advertiser’s parent company William Reed Business Media, also revealed 42% of the 271 of respondents will not be taking part in the scheme.
However, when broken down into operator types, 81 of the 160 pub operators asked won’t be offering the discount to customers.
The poll also asked respondents how confident they were about the future of their business and this appears to show confidence is increasing among operators.
Confidence levels
In last week’s poll, 57% of the 308 board level operators or founders showed a level of confidence on the future of their business while 44% were not confident.
However, that poll took place before Chancellor Rishi Sunak’s announcement about a VAT cut and the Eat Out to Help Out scheme.
In the latest survey, 68% of the 271 respondents showed levels of confidence on the future of the business – up by 11 percentage points.
Again, when broken down to pubs, 114 of the 160 pub operators showed some form of confidence in their business for the future.
The survey also asked if no shows had been an issue since reopening and most (78%) of those asked said it hadn’t been a problem for them.
No shows impact
This comes after celebrity chef Tom Kerridge hit out at customers who failed to show at his London venue.
He posted on his Instagram that 27 people had made reservations at Kerridge’s Bar & Grill in the Corinthia Hotel in central London but did not turn up, blaming them for adding to the issues the hospitality industry is already facing.
The gastropub operator also mentioned the impact no shows have on staffing at venues and the cost to businesses.
In the latest survey, poll respondents included 271 founders or board level operators across pubs, restaurants and the food-to-go sector.
