42% Spending Less at the Pub

A new study has found 42% of drinkers are spending less in pubs than six months ago, reports the Morning Advertiser.

Corporate advisory firm Zolfo Cooper’s bi-annual Leisure Wallet report, which combines analysis of the spending habits of more than 3,000 consumers carried out in November, found signifcant falls in leisure spend across vitually all sectors.

The only sector to witness a net increase in spend, albeit 1%, was gyms. Elsewhere the declines are in many cases steep, with 42% of drinkers spending less in pubs and bars than six months ago. Within the restaurant sector 41% of diners are spending less than before, as are 45% of clubbers.

The frequency with which people visit leisure venues is also in sharp decline with 43% eating outside the home less often, and 48% drinking outside the home less often.

Almost two-thirds of clubbers, 61%, are going less often than they were just six months ago, confirming the late night sector’s travails highlighted by industry leader Luminar’s recent financial results. Even among the key 18-24 year-olds, among whom clubbing is more widespread, some 55% say they are clubbing less often, with entry costs cited as a major deterrent.

Around a quarter (24%) of those aged 18 to 24 years old said they had increased their in-home leisure spend in the past six months, while the over 55s was the only age range where the amount of people saying their out of home leisure spend hadn’t been affected outstripped those that said it had.