Food and drink sales boosted by Jubilee holidays, dented by street parties
Food sales increased by 8% over the five-day period.
Past Bank Holidays lifted sales for Britain’s pubs, bars and restaurants but street parties dented trading over the weekend.
New data by CGA, recently acquired by NielsenIQ, showed operators seeing an average sales uplift of 5% over the five-day bank holiday period compared to the previous 12 weeks but with significant increases on the Wednesday (up 47%), Thursday (up 54%) and Friday (up 7%) followed by sales dropping by 20% and 22% on the Saturday and Sunday.
Food sales increased by 8% over the five-day period, with drinks seeing a 3% uplift.
The long Jubilee weekend also saw a 12% increase in spirits sales, with vodka a key driver and a 10% hike in cocktail sales, a 11% rise in soft drinks sales, a 4% drop in beer sales but a 12% rise in the cider category.
The research also indicated that total five-day sales increased by 8% in rural areas, performing better than high streets (up 5%) and suburban areas (up 4%). Despite Jubilee celebrations being centred on London, the sales uplift in the capital was below the UK average at 1%.
