Brits are returning to the pub after years of decline, according to new research by Kantar Alcovision.
The new research show that visitors to pubs and clubs were up year-on-year for the 12 months to 31 March 2014, although the number of drinks served continued to fall.
The study, which was highlighted in M&C Report’s sister title The Grocer, found that drinkers were buying fewer but more premium drinks on a night out. It showed that pubs, clubs and restaurants’ share of all servings of beer & cider had gone from 39.4% to 41.7% in the past year – the greatest swing in the on-trade’s favour for more than a decade.
It found that overall beer and cider volumes had risen 0.9% during the year, driven by an increase in cider sales and solid growth in premium ales and world lager.
Kevan Mulcahey, Kantar’s alcohol unit director, told The Grocer: “The decline’s been going on for 15 years. We are now at the bottom of the curve. It’s got to the point where pub visits were at the lowest level and there was an opportunity for pubs to start growing again.
“We don’t think it will ever recover to prior levels but pubs are still a great way of delivering profit. Much more so than retailers.”
