The hospitality industry has had a lot to contend with over the last few years, but it is now facing another hit, as the recent rail strikes are expected to cost the sector as much as £540 million.
Strategic affairs director of trade body UK Hospitality Tony Sophoclides told The Times: “Rail strikes will have a massive impact.”
He stated that city centres are already struggling as lots of people continue to work from home, affecting recovery following the pandemic.
“Getting people physically into our venues is incredibly important to drive the recovery,” he commented.
However, the rail strikes, which has seen more than 40,000 train staff taking part this week, are causing spending in towns and city centres to drop by 20 per cent.
Chief executive of the organisation Kate Nicholls spoke to Sky regarding the three-day strike, saying a third of hospitality venues “have no cash reserves”, and this current setback could “push them closer towards the edge of viability”.
In addition to this, rising inflation is becoming very difficult for some businesses to manage.
Earlier this week (June 22nd), the Office for National Statistics revealed inflation reached 9.1 per cent in May, which is the steepest rate of growth in 40 years.
In February 2021, it was just 0.4 per cent, having soared by 8.7 per cent over the last year and a half.
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