London pub scene ‘showing real resilience’ despite soaring costs
The number of pubs in London has barely budged in the last decade despite heavy pressure on the capital’s hospitality scene.
There are 3,523 pubs in the capital, only 10 fewer than in 2023 and just under the 3,530 venues recorded in 2017, according to data from the ONS.
“The data shows it’s far from doom and gloom for the London pub scene,” Sam Cullen, author of London’s Lost Pubs, said.
“It is obviously very sad the data shows a small reduction in the total number of pubs but it is clear there is a real resilience to the London pub scene,” Cullen said.
There have been a number of high-profile re-openings like the Blue Maid and Hand and Marigold in Southwark, as well as pubs like the Clapton Hart.
In fact, 11 boroughs – including Westminster, Lambeth and Southwark – recorded an increase in their pub numbers.
London hospitality under pressure
After a tumultuous period during the pandemic, which saw many pubs turn to crowdfunding to stay afloat, hospitality venues were then faced with soaring energy costs after Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022.
A host of tax rises, announced in last October’s Autumn budget and applied from this April, seemed to be the final straw for many, with labour costs eating into already-thin margins.
Simmons, a chain of bars in the capital, has entered administration after announcing plans to close at least four sites.
Kate Davidson, The Old Ivy House in London, said the cost hikes have been “relentless… we’re growing, but the profits don’t reflect that proportionally.”
UK Hospitality, the sector’s representative lobby, called the budget a “hammer blow” to the sector and warned it would lead to closures and job losses.
While this unfortunately appears to be the case for many small pubs across the country, London seems to have been spared the worst of the crisis.
An influx of tourists, plus higher wages than elsewhere in the country, have helped to prop up demand – despite the rising cost of a pint.
Many pubs have also started to shift to offering food, with margins on gastropubs better than on pure-play boozers.
Cullen pointed to the staff as key in keeping businesses going, as well as the efforts of supporting trade bodies.
“CAMRA and other community groups… do so much to keep pubs alive when their future is at risk,” he said.