​September sales go in reverse post-curfew

Sales slumped in September after the combination of the withdrawal of EOHO and the introduction of the 10pm curfew, according to the Coffer Peach Business Tracker. Wet-led pubs were hit hardest, with sales down 22.7% and like-for-likes down 21.1%. Restaurant groups suffered a sales slump of 19.6%, but like-for-likes were down just 6.7% below September 2019, thanks to 72% of group-owned restaurant sites trading during the month. Bar groups, which had 79% of their sites trading, had the worst of the month, with like-for-like sales down 37.1% and total sales down 42.7%. Delivery accounted for 10.4% of sales, up from 8.8% in August and the pre-lockdown level of 5.9% in February.