Trade boosted by extra bank holiday

The tracker showed trade was up by the same margin on the pre-pandemic level of September 2019, however, high inflation meant sales were down in real terms.

Despite some pubs closing for the occasion, on premise sales were lifted by the addition of a public holiday for the funeral​ of Queen Elizabeth II with trade up 34% and 21% on Sunday 18 and Monday 19 September respectively vs the same days in 2019.  

Growing concerns 

However, there was something of a hangover for the rest of the week, with sales down by between 2% and 13% from Tuesday 20 to Saturday 24 September.

Furthermore, cooler weather and consumers’ growing concerns regarding rising costs​ also contributed to the dip.

Additionally, the extra bank holiday and strong long alcoholic drinks (LAD) sales helped pull on-trade drinks sales just ahead of 2021 levels last week with beer and cider sales up 8% and 7% respectively year-on-year.

Wine (6%) and soft drinks (1%) also saw growth, though the spirits category saw a decline of 12%.

Stimulate spending 

This comes as the previous tracker​ showed sales in managed venues during the seven days to Saturday 17 September were also 1% behind compared with 2021.

CGA managing director UK and Ireland Johnathan Jones said: “These figures show many consumers chose to spend parts of the weekend of the Queen’s funeral in the communal environments of pubs and bars.

“While it’s pleasing to see year-on-year growth, high inflation and mounting concerns about energy​ and mortgage bills means more Government support is clearly going to be needed to mitigate businesses’ costs and stimulate consumers’ spending.”