Pints and picnics: Euros and hottest day of 2021 boost pub and food spending
England’s win in the Euros and brilliant sunshine and high temperatures boosted spending across pubs and on the high street at the weekend.
The total amount spent at UK pubs jumped 4.5 per cent over the weekend, compared to the previous ones, as fans gathered to cheer on England against Croatia.
But tills were ringing away from the pub too, with supermarkets posting revenues up 1.9 per cent, according to Barclaycard data, as people bought picnic food and drinks to enjoy in the sun.
In what be cold comfort for some pub bosses, who have just been told by the GOvernment that they cannot increase indoor capacity unti 19 July, weekend spending was ahead of the same weekend before the pandemic.
Pubs and bars were up 1.6 per cent compared to the same weekend in 2019, and supermarkets were up 16.3 per cent
Sunday was the hottest day of the year and was sunny across most of England, with temperatures in London touching nearly 29 degrees.
Rob Cameron, CEO of Barclaycard Payments, said: “It wasn’t just football fans that had cause to celebrate this weekend – the combination of sport and sunshine brought a welcome boost to the UK economy, especially for pubs, bars and supermarkets.
“While this continues to be a challenging trading period for the hospitality industry, this weekend’s figures are hopefully an early indicator of brighter times ahead when all lockdown restrictions are lifted.”