Additional 145m pint bonus for UK’s one metre rule

Following the UK Government's recent announcement that Social Distancing through pubs, cafés, bars, hotels and restaurants has been reduced to one metre from 4th July, out-of-home food and drink consultancy CGA has calculated that an additional 145 million pints of beer will be sold through the sector compared with what would have been sold with Social Distancing set at two metres.

UK market analyst CGA’s original forecast had been based on the two metre Social Distancing rule remaining in place until the end of August and it calculated that under these conditions, outlets could only trade at around 30% capacity whereas at one metre this rose to 70%, equating to a significant difference in sales.

“As well as the difference in sales, more outlets are likely to open in July as their businesses become viable at 70% capacity,” commented Jonny Jones, CGA’s Director of Client Services, “The combination of more outlets opening and a significantly higher capacity across all who do equates to an additional 145 million pints of beer sold over the remainder of 2020 although this does depend on consumer confidence and how people feel about going out again.

“Our data suggests there’s enough pent-up demand to max-out sales at this level of supply but many consumers are still cautious about returning to the trade and want to see precautions put in place to ensure their safety. It’s now down to operators to market their credentials as Covid-19-safe and ensure that customers feel comfortable to visit their outlets.”

The figures are based on CGA’s longstandingOn-premise measurement servicewhich measures all drinks sold in licensed venues along with its consumer research via BrandTrack (April results) and its latest  Business Leaders Confidence Survey.