Revenues in hotel and restaurants services are falling again. In the first week of November, businesses made almost 22 percent less on average than in the previous week, the last week of October.
The slight decline continued in the second week of November. Several factors are to blame – the worsening epidemiological situation, the end of seasonal operations of selected restaurants, the reintroduction of homeoffice by employees of some businesses and infection-free controls.
Naturally, with falling revenues, number of visitors has also fallen, by just under 16 per cent in the first week of November. That’s according to data from Storyous, which creates a comprehensive restaurant system.
Even rising prices did not compensate restaurants for the decline in guests at the beginning of November. According to Storyous data, restaurant attendance fell by nearly 16 percent and average revenue per establishment fell by nearly 22 percent. In the second week of November, average revenue continued to decline by another two percent, while attendance fell by 9 percent.
“There are a number of factors behind the decline – the worsening epidemiological situation, the end of seasonal operations of selected restaurants, home office regulation by some companies, people’s fears of contagion and, no doubt, infection-free controls. Restaurant revenues were therefore up by around six per cent in comparison to previous week of October. A sharper drop followed in November. However, it is rather difficult to say how big role the individual factors play, it is rather a combination of them,” says Storyous CEO Igor Třeslín.
Revenues down nearly 10 percent compared to 2019
The decline in number of guest and revenues is fairly typical as November approaches. This year, however, the drop compared to 2019 was double for number of visits and more than six times for average revenues.
Alarmingly, restaurateurs earned nearly 10 percent less than two years ago, when prices for food, goods, energy and services were significantly lower.
“A relatively satisfactory summer is unfortunately followed by a rather cold shower. The success of this year’s hospitality season will be determined by the pre-Christmas and Christmas period, when restaurants usually host various parties. In non-coronavirus years, they are thus the most successful of the whole year, still together with the summer. If restaurants lose Christmas and New Year’s Eve parties, as companies can be expected to cancel them following the newly announced measures, there could be a 40-50 percent drop in revenues,” says Třeslín.
