Less visits for restaurants, pubs and coffee shops due to COVID-19 fears
More suburban consumers say they are avoiding going out.
A growing number of consumers have decided to stop going out because of COVID-19 fears, a poll carried out by CGA has revealed.
Over half (52%) of adults who normally eat or drink out said they had already stopped going to restaurants on government advice, with crucially half (51%) of those yet to stop visiting saying they would cease to do so this week.
47% said customers have stopped visiting in pubs the past week, and almost half (48%) of consumers who are yet to stop saying they will not visit this week.
47% of coffee shop visitors also said they already stopped going, with 30% visiting less frequently, and 46% of those still visiting stopping this week.
The tendency to stay away is much stronger amongst older age groups. In contrast, over half (58%) of 18-34 year olds who typical go out said they would continue to go out to pubs, bars and restaurants.
Those who live in suburban and rural locations are the most likely group to follow government advice, with 68% of suburban consumers saying they are avoiding going out. In contrast, almost a third (28%) of consumers living in town centres predict they will still visit pubs and bars.
For those living in city centres, a majority of consumers expect to continue to visit the likes of pubs, bars and restaurants, with over 1 in 5 (22%) saying they will visit venues as often.
Consumers from the North East are most likely to be unfazed by government advice, with just under a quarter (24%) predicting that they will continue to visit venues as often as usual.
Nearly a quarter (23%) of the population said that they had also chosen to stay local when going out to eat and drink rather than venture into city centres over the past two weeks.
CGA also noted a growing appetite for delivered food, with the survey revealing that 1 in 8 of those polled reporting getting delivery from a restaurant or takeaway either for the first time, or more often than usual. Of those, 72% suggested that they were likely to continue this behaviour, regardless of COVID-19.
In addition, 20% of those surveyed said they used “click and collect” from eating and drinking out establishments, with a further 15% planning on doing so. Drive-thrus are also seeing an upturn, with over 1 in 10 consumers (11%) reporting increased usage or planned increased usage.
This study was released following government advice to close down all restaurants and days before the announcement of the three-week lockdown.
