Deliveries and takeaways now account for nearly a quarter of all sales at Britain’s leading restaurant groups, having doubled since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.
CGA by NielsenIQ’s new Hospitality at Home Tracker shows sales by value in October 2022 were 97% higher than in October 2019—the last comparable month before COVID-19. Takeaway and click-and-collect sales have grown 55%, but deliveries have soared 236% as consumers switched to the convenience of third-party ordering platforms.
Deliveries and takeaways accounted for 24% of the total sales of groups contributing to the Hospitality at Home Tracker in October 2022, with eat-in sales making up 76%.
However, the Tracker indicates growth has stalled since the end of COVID-19 restrictions. Combined delivery and takeaway sales were down by 7% on October 2021—the 11th consecutive month of year-on-year decline.
Karl Chessell, CGA’s business unit director – hospitality operators and food, EMEA, said:
“Deliveries saved many restaurant businesses during COVID-19 lockdowns, and consumers continue to be attracted by their convenience. The plateauing of sales since the end of restrictions is a positive sign that some people have reverted to eating out rather than ordering in over the last 12 months, but it may also reflect increasingly cautious spending as the cost-of-living crisis mounts. Sustaining sales and protecting margins will be major challenges as the squeeze on disposable incomes tightens.”
