In a survey conducted by the Association of Catering Establishments (ACE) following first week of reopening it transpires that more than half the respondents of catering establishments performed far better than the reopening week of last year. Some of whom, recording sales three times those of last year’s reopening week, whilst bearing in mind that on 2020 public in general was very sceptic in visiting restaurants.
During the closure period , 31 percent of establishments did not offer delivery service whilst 33 percent stated that delivery sales when compared to the closure period in 2020 were far worse mainly due to increased competition, 24 percent claim to have performed better than last year during same period.
51% claim that performance during the first months of 2021 were overall worse than 2020, also due to the fact that first two months of last year were pre-Covid, while 30% state that overall performance was at the same levels. 19% recorded an overall increase in sales.
83% of the respondents confirm that they believe that performance will improve further on reopening for dinner on 24 May, and are very optimistic for the coming months, while 81% state that 50 million worth of Vouchers are of extreme importance in kickstarting the recovery of the sector’s performance. Furthermore, some 60% feel that the boost in tourism is critical for the sustainability of their establishment. 55% of respondents look positively at the second half of 2021 while some 46% think it will take approximately two years to recover from the damage caused by the pandemic.
The general feeling from all respondents was that now there is a sense of optimism, looking ahead for the coming months, but all were explicit that a third time of closure cannot ever be considered an option, so ACE urges the public to kindly cooperate with establishment owners and respective authorities and observe the health guidelines.