Christmas Eve topped the charts up an impressive +9% vs 2023.
Other key trading days did not fare as well with Mad Friday +1% whilst the last two Saturdays before Christmas were down -1.7% and -2.4%. New Year’s Eve was worst hit, especially in the Northern parts of the UK where bad weather meant sales were down -3.6% vs 2023.
The total number of trading UK on trade outlets in the year-to-date to December show an overall decline of 0.5% which is marginally higher than the previous month (-0.4%) and in the 4 weeks to 28th December we see this number accelerated -1.5% as the prospect of the budget impacts started to bite venues.
Venue opening hours increased 1% as the trade capitalised on the key festive trading.
There was some good news for the trade with a marginal growth in footfall shown by occupancy levels up +2.8% vs. the same 4 weeks in December ’23. Consumer occasion dwell time was down 1.9% for the four weeks vs last year… BUT there is some good news as the last week of the year saw this bounce up +9.1% compared to 2023.
Eating out spend was up just 1.1%, while spending at Pubs, Bars & Clubs grew just 1.3%, down from 2.1% and 3.5% in November.
This is compared to Supermarkets where spend was -2.0% with Barclays research showing 64% of shoppers are looking for ways to get more value from their weekly shop or reduce how much they spend. This compares to 49% who said they plan to cut back on eating out in restaurants and 38% who said they were looking to reduce how much they spend on drinks in bars, pubs and clubs.
At a MAT level we see the year end -2.1% for Draught Beer & Cider Sales with the 4 weeks of December driving a flat year on year performance, being only marginally down 0.2%. Stout continued to be the engine of growth despite the widespread reported shortages, with an impressive +22.1% uplift with World Lager +5.5%.
Alison Jordan, CEO of The Oxford Partnership comments:
“Christmas trading has painted a mixed picture, with standout moments like Christmas Eve’s impressive +9% growth offering a spark of positivity amidst softer results on other key days. While challenges such as weather impacts and economic pressures tempered overall performance, the resilience of venues and a late bounce in footfall remind us that the festive season still holds opportunities for recovery and growth.”